September 12, 2019, Minister of Energy and Environmental Protection of Ukraine Oleksiy Orzhel met with Satu Kahkonen, World Bank Country Director for Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova.

Oleksiy Orzhel noted that the newly created Ministry will be responsible for both environmental and energy issues, outlined its main areas of activities and expressed hope that a simultaneous focus in these two areas will allow for a comprehensive approach to address all issues that have accumulated in the two ministries.

The Minister drew the attention of World Bank representatives to the fact that recent global trends show that only a sustainable development of the energy sector with increased attention to climate change and environmental protection can ensure its competitiveness at the global level.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the whole complex of issues related to the unbundling of the Naftogaz of Ukraine, in particular, elaboration of a new model of separating functions of the GTS operator, which the Minister had previously presented to the representatives of the European Commission.

The parties expressed their interest in further fruitful cooperation on expanding the World Bank's investment portfolio in Ukraine and launching new energy projects. In particular, the Minister suggested to the bank representatives the opening of directions for investing in the processing of solid household waste.

“We look forward to a long and productive collaboration. In particular, we want to abandon the linear model and embark on building processes in accordance with the principles of the circular economy. The first step is to launch a waste management hierarchy. Such processes are harmoniously integrated into a single complex energy system, on the creation of which we will now work. This will allow us to use our resources efficiently avoiding any harm to the environment”, Oleksiy Orzhel emphasized.