The year of 2017 has become a real breakthrough in adopting laws on energy efficiency, says Hennadii Zubko during International Forum on Energy Efficiency

In 2017, the Government approved the Concept of heat supply reform, the necessary legislative framework in energy efficiency sector, starting 2018 there will be launched a mechanism for monetization of a subsidy for heat providers. The following step is to monetize subsidies for the consumer, thereby enabling the country to return back part of the saved subsidies to be invested in energy efficiency. This was emphasized during the International Forum on Energy Efficiency by Vice Prime Minister/Minister of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine Hennadii Zubko.

"Nowadays we estimate the market for modernization of the housing sector at EUR 30 billion, public utility companies – at EUR 12 billion. Year-on-year, the sum worth UAH 80 billion is spent on subsidies from the State Budget to compensate for the population payments for housing and communal services provision. Therefore, we have a crucial objective which is to save energy and cut consumption, and aftermath this economized resource to invest in energy efficiency measures", urged Hennadii Zubko.

According to him, the year of 2017 has become a breakthrough in adopting laws on energy efficiency. First of all, it concerns the formation of an efficient consumer and owner in the housing sector (among the approved laws On the Peculiarities for the Realization of a Right to Property in a Multi-Apartment Building, On Housing and Communal Services), the possibility for energy accounting (the Law On Commercial Accounting of Thermal Energy and Water Supply), the launch of market of energy auditors, self-regulatory organizations, registers, certificates (Law on Energy Efficiency of Buildings) and the Energy Efficiency Fund (Law on Energy Efficiency Fund).

"The aforesaid laws are interconnected, as they trigger services and service providers, as well as influence consumers interest to move in this direction. The consumer must receive apart from financial support from the State or international partners, also technical assistance for the introduction of energy efficiency technologies. And it is these technologies that will come to Ukraine and will allow to reduce energy consumption for over 50-60%", the Vice Prime Minister emphasized.

Hennadii Zubko added currently a large team of professionals engages in implementation of an energy efficiency reform: the President, the Government, MPs, experts, international partners and consumers. "A synonym of energy efficiency is energy independence, independence of our State. It is our target to make Ukraine cost-conscious in consumption of energy resources and competitive due to domestic production and natural resources," summed up the official.