Studying the Ukrainian market and selecting projects now, without spending years on analysis – discussed at the URC side event
On 10 June, a side event to the International Conference on Ukraine’s Recovery in Berlin ‘Green Reconstruction for Sustainability and Prosperity of European Ukraine’ was organised by the Heinrich Böll Stiftung and DiXi Group think tank.
“Ukraine’s top priority now is to survive and win the war. However, today we must talk not only about homework for Ukrainians, but also about the help of our partners to ensure that after the war we are not left without funds, people and resources to rebuild the country in the way we have defined in the National Energy and Climate Plan. We are defending not only ourselves, but also European goals, European future, and European values. And we need support so that we can build the country we want,’ said DiXi Group President Olena Pavlenko in her welcoming speech.
Olena Pavlenko (President, DiXi Group, Ukraine)
She stressed that it is not easy to link the devastation and situation in Ukraine to green recovery and decarbonisation, but this is a goal that we must achieve together with our partners.
Jan Philipp Albrecht, co-president of the Heinrich Boell Foundation, welcomed the participants and noted that although the war is in a critical phase, the task of Ukraine’s partners is not only to help Ukraine defend itself in this war, but also to support the reconstruction now.
“On the one hand, it is the need of the people – they cannot wait until the war is over. On the other hand, international commitments to stand with Ukraine and support its reconstruction are an important signal of solidarity to both Ukrainians and the aggressor. We will not abandon Ukraine, and it has a European future. Our main task at the Foundation is to promote a broad public discourse on the implementation of green recovery,’ the co-president stressed.
During the discussion ‘The Path of Sustainable Recovery for Ukraine: Vision and Choice’, Roman Andarak, Deputy Minister of Energy for Digital Development, Digital Transformation and Digitalisation, spoke about the consequences of the spring and summer attacks on the Ukrainian energy system by Russia. In particular, he stressed that even after Ukraine ‘repairs everything possible, the shortage of generation capacity in the system will be between 2 and 3 GW’. At the same time, Ukraine has no technologies to compensate for this damage.
“In this situation, we understand that the government will not be able to cope on its own. We will need international assistance, in particular from donors. But we also need to cooperate with private companies,’ he stressed. ’We are focusing our work in seven areas. Firstly, we will repair as many buildings as possible. But we also understand that some facilities may be damaged again. Second, we will support private generation. Thirdly, we will work with the European Commission and our operators, who are currently limited in capacity, to increase it to 2 GW. We are also looking for decommissioned power plants in Europe that can be quickly relocated to Ukraine.”
According to the deputy, this may contradict the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP), but it is now a matter of survival.
Roman Andarak stressed that the priority is to find all types of generation that can be brought to Ukraine quickly and installed before winter, as Ukraine has already returned to blackout schedules, and the lack of electricity directly harms the Ukrainian economy.
Roman Andarak (Deputy Minister of Energy of Ukraine (online)
Anton Hofreiter (Member of Bundestag, Chairperson Committee on European Union Affairs), Sascha Müller-Kraenner (Executive Director, Environmental Action Germany (DUH), Moderation: Johannes Voswinkel (Heinrich Böll Stiftung), Mechthild Wörsdörfer (Deputy Director General, DG Energy, European Commission), Marcus Lippold (DG NEAR, European Commission), Roman Andarak (Deputy Minister of Energy of Ukraine (online)
Mechthild Wörsdörfer, Deputy Director General of DG Energy, stressed during the event that the European Commission provides comprehensive support to Ukraine, in particular in the energy sector.
For example, it has provided 600,000 generators for Ukrainian hospitals, set up a Working Group to support Ukraine in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency and more than 100 companies from 22 countries to quickly provide the necessary equipment.
In addition, the Ukraine Energy Support Fund was established, with Germany as one of the largest donors, as well as the €50 billion Ukraine Facility, which will support Ukraine over the next 4 years by channelling funds to energy and green recovery.
“The European Union supports Ukraine at all levels. We have taken a historic step by granting Ukraine the status of an EU candidate. This is a clear political signal that Ukraine’s future lies in the EU, and we will do everything we can to support Ukraine. We have already heard about the damage done to Ukraine’s energy system. And our immediate goal is to help rebuild it. We have several concrete steps that we are already implementing,’ she said.
Marcus Lippold, Head of the Energy Team at the European Union’s Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), said that the main task is to start the process of decarbonisation in Ukraine. He noted that Ukraine has the necessary tools, such as the European Emissions Trading System (ETS), to set prices for CO2 emissions and start discussions on the transition to cleaner technologies.
One of the biggest challenges, in his opinion, is the transition from a centralised energy system to a decentralised one based on renewable energy sources. This requires the development of attractive investment projects and the efficient use of financial assistance.
“The main thing for us is to implement the plan for rebuilding Ukraine. This means not only attracting significant investments but also creating truly attractive projects that will interest investors. It is also important to make the most of all financial support opportunities, including the $50 billion fund, and to take into account the best resources and competencies available in Ukraine. After all, despite the war and depletion, the country continues to function, importing record volumes of electricity – 1.7 gigawatts. This is an impressive testament to Ukraine’s resilience and potential, which we must harness to rebuild,’ said the DG NEAR representative.
Marcus Lippold (DG NEAR, European Commission)
During the second panel of the event, ‘Seizing Opportunities for Investments You Will Not Regret: From Policy to Projects’ Andriy Kitura, Development Director of DiXi Group Think Tank, who also serves as Head of the Green Transition Office at the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, shared with the participants the prospects and strategies for green recovery in Ukraine, as well as key areas that will contribute to the country’s sustainability and prosperity.
“Our team, together with the Ministry of Economy and the Kyiv School of Economics, has been working on a database of investment projects. During the International Conference on Ukraine’s Recovery, we will present the Investment Guide, which covers key sectors of the economy, as well as information on 100 projects that Ukraine can offer to investors. We have analysed these projects and identified those that potentially meet the EU environmental taxonomy and the requirements of various international financial institutions. In total, we have identified 37 such projects,’ the expert said.
Nadiya Petruchenko, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at SPP Development, spoke about the challenges faced by the energy market. She also called on all stakeholders to change their approach and thinking and participate in energy projects to accelerate the rebuilding of Ukraine’s energy system.
“If you are really interested in the Ukrainian market, choose a project now. Forget about years of analysis. We believe that market research and project selection can be done simultaneously. Be flexible and understand the challenges we face. Now is the time to act decisively,’ Nadiia Petruchenko encouraged the participants.
Nadiia Petruchenko (Co-founder & Chief Business Officer at SPP Development Ukraine)
At the same time, Olga Kovalchuk, Head of Finance and Investment at German company Goldbeck Solar, spoke about her company’s entry into the Ukrainian market despite the war. Their company received investment insurance from the German government that covers military risks. They are currently focusing on projects in the central and western regions of Ukraine.
“We work closely with the Ukrainian government, which provides us with significant support. The changes to corporate law that have been introduced will allow for the restructuring of companies and facilitate the distribution of dividends and the management of foreign currency reserves, which is important for international investors. Despite the challenging market conditions, we are ready to work and have successful experience in other countries,’ said the Head of Finance and Investments at Goldbeck Solar.
Захід організовано Фондом Гайнріха Бьолля та аналітичним центром DiXi Group за підтримки USAID у рамках проєкту “Прозорість енергетичного сектору”, який виконує ГО “ДІКСІ ГРУП”, та Міжнародного фонду Відродження в рамках проєкту “Підтримка декарбонізації економіки України через розробку нових моделей фінансування за рахунок використання боргових зобов’язань. Стадія 5”.
