Denys Shmyhal held a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the IEA Ministerial Meeting

On the second day of the IEA Ministerial Meeting in Paris on February 19, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Energy, Denys Shmyhal, held a series of bilateral meetings and negotiations on strengthening cooperation with partners to restore and ensure the sustainability of Ukraine's energy sector.

Denys Shmyhal discussed with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, the possibility of transferring the equipment needed by Ukraine to repair energy facilities and strengthen their protection. The Minister of Energy thanked Mr. Jean-Noël Barrot for the humanitarian aid provided by France, in particular to support Ukraine's energy sector. This includes more than 50 shipments of transformers, generators, and other equipment for repairing damaged facilities.

During a meeting with Danish Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard, Denys Shmyhal thanked Denmark for an additional EUR 20 million for the needs of the Ukrainian energy sector and its willingness to increase the amount of support. They also discussed Denmark's support in supplying energy equipment for repairs.

The Minister of Energy also met with Latvian Minister for Climate and Energy, Kaspars Melnis. The parties focused on discussing joint projects to modernize Ukrainian energy facilities. Denys Shmyhal emphasized the importance and worth of Latvia's support for Ukraine.

"We greatly appreciate the assistance provided, especially the energy equipment for repairs after the russian attacks. We are especially grateful to our friends in Latvia for providing Kyiv with generators and transformers, as well as for their willingness to transfer a new batch of equipment from Latvian power plants. We value our partnership with the Republic of Latvia in strengthening the energy resilience of our countries and regional energy security," said Denys Shmyhal.

The First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Energy told European Commissioner for Energy and Housing, Dan Jørgensen, about the current priorities of Ukraine's energy sector and thanked the EU for 500 generators for Ukraine.

“This helped to ensure heat and water supply to homes amid intensified russian strikes on critical infrastructure. I would like to thank the European Commission for its steadfast support of Ukraine and joint work on energy security in the region,” Denys Shmyhal said.

During his speech at the International Energy Agency's event in Paris, “Global Cooperation to Strengthen Resilience and Sustainable Development in the Energy Sector,” Denys Shmyhal thanked the Chair of the IEA Ministerial Meeting, Deputy Prime Minister – Minister for Climate Policy and Green Growth of the Netherlands, Sophie Hermans, and IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol for organizing the Ministerial Meeting, where Ukraine became a priority. He emphasized that throughout the full-scale war, the enemy had been purposefully attacking Ukraine's energy sector: power plants, thermal power plants, substations, power lines, and gas infrastructure.

That is why Ukraine, together with its international partners, is working to strengthen infrastructure protection, develop comprehensive response capabilities, create reserves of critical equipment, decentralize energy assets, and ensure cyber and physical protection of facilities.

“Thank you to all our partners for their help and contributions to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund. Thank you to all our partners who stand with us,” said Denys Shmyhal.