Minister of Energy of Ukraine German Galushchenko met with World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Antonella Bassani and World Bank Regional Director for Eastern Europe Arup Banerji.

The parties discussed areas of support for the Ukrainian energy sector in the context of continued targeted russian attacks on energy infrastructure and the implementation of projects to strengthen the resilience of the energy system.

The Restoration Project of Winterization and Energy Resources provides for a total funding of USD 500 million. The funds will be used to purchase equipment for heating services and equipment for electricity transmission infrastructure. The first part of the agreement provides for a grant of USD 200 million. Another agreement provides for a EUR 37.74 million grant from the German government to install STATCOM devices at substations to ensure regulatory parameters of electricity. The equipment will be supplied to the national transmission system operator Ukrenergo.

The Head of the Ministry of Energy briefed the World Bank representatives on the measures Ukraine was taking to prepare for the next heating season, which could be quite difficult in the context of continuing russian attacks.

“Last year, massive russian attacks on our energy facilities lasted throughout the entire heating season – from 10 October to 9 March inclusive. The largest repair campaign in the history of Ukraine is currently underway at our energy facilities. We plan to focus on repairing power generation facilities. We are also working to restore substations and grids, as well as thermal generation facilities in critical regions. In total, we plan to add 1.7 GW to the grid by next winter as a result of the repair campaign. At the same time, we expect hostile attacks to continue next winter, so the support of our partners to ensure maximum resilience of the system is extremely important,” the Minister said.

German Galushchenko stressed that in preparation for the winter, work was underway to strengthen the physical protection of critical infrastructure. Negotiations are also underway with ENTSO-E to increase the volume of electricity imports from European countries to meet the needs of consumers during the most critical periods.

The Minister also highlighted the reforms undertaken by the Ukrainian Government to liberalise the electricity market, in particular to bring the rules governing the market in line with European legislation.

The parties also discussed the progress of current cooperation projects and future directions and prospects for cooperation.