of the Russian authorities after the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea Transportation Ukrtransgaz (100%), a subsidiary Ukrtransnafta (100%), open joint-stock association Ukrspetstransgaz (100%), state joint-stock association Wholesale and distribution Gaz Ukrainy (100%), a subsidiary Naftogaz Trading Europe S.A (100%), Swiss based company Kirovohradgaz (100%) Ukravtogaz (100%) Subsidiary enterprises Vuhlesyntezgaz Ukraiiny (100%) Naftogaz-Energoservice (100%) International activities Ukraine now plays a vital role in both the storage and transit of gas in Europe and in improving EU energy security. Ukraine has the largest storage capacity in Europe, which enables the country and its European partners to accumulate over 30 bcm of gas during summer periods when prices are lowest. Ukraine is also strategically placed to play the role of a transit hub. Its interconnectors have the ability to transfer gas from central Europe to South-Eastern Europe, which is the most exposed region to Russia's gas monopoly. Naftogaz asserts that ensuring gas flows freely will significantly improve the liquidity and the stability of the EU market, making it more resilient to political pressure. The company drills for oil in the Western Desert in Egypt. On December 13, 2006, Naftogaz and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation had signed an agreement on the exploration and development of oil and gas deposits on the eastern territory of Alam El Shawish East in the Western Egyptian desert. In 2014 Naftogaz began natural gas extraction in Egypt. The company's oil production in Egypt estimated at 260,000 tonnes for 2014, which is more than 10% of annual production in Ukraine. A new natural gas pipeline allowing for extraction of approximately 300,000 cubic meters per day has also been launched. Corruption The Yanukovych government was famously despotic and corrupt. Naftogaz has been seen as one of the biggest sources of corruption in Ukraine for years with many of the country's billionaires having acquired much of their wealth through gas arbitrage based on differences between the prices of Russian gas imports, gas exports to the EU and government energy subsidies to homes and businesses. Yevgeny Bakulin Yevgeny Bakulin, who was a close ally of former deputy prime minister Yuri Boiko, was appointed as the chief executive of state energy company Naftogaz in 2010 by the ousted president Viktor Yanukovich. Ukrainian police detained Bakulin in connection with a corruption investigation. Yevgeny Bakulin is still under three separate investigations into suspected corruption in the gas industry that has cost the Ukrainian state about