Olena Pavlenko, President of DiXi Group, presented an overview of the situation in Ukraine’s energy sector and its potential for international investors during the panel discussion “Ukraine’s Economy: Current Realities and Future Prospects,” organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on April 15 in Washington.
“The power grid must operate stably to ensure proper economic growth. For more than four years, the Ukrainian energy sector has been one of Russia’s key targets in its full-scale war. This winter was exceptionally difficult; we have already lost more than 50% of our capacity. In terms of losses, estimates already exceed $20 billion,” noted the president of the think tank.
At the same time, Olena Pavlenko emphasized that this crisis has not dampened investment interest. “There is activity,” she noted, adding that international partners continue to come to Ukraine and invest in specific projects, primarily concentrated in the western and central regions of the country.
“On the one hand, we are undoubtedly in an energy crisis. On the other hand, we are managing to be flexible and creative enough to recover and move forward with the development of the energy sector,” the expert added.
During the discussion, the president also spoke about the energy resilience experience that Ukraine can offer to other countries. With all the attacks on its energy infrastructure, Ukraine has learned many lessons that will be useful to its partners. The DiXi Group team has compiled them in a document: “Holding the Grid: Ukraine’s Energy Resilience Playbook”.
Among the key conclusions, she highlighted three areas:
- The need to continue using gas to strengthen the energy sector’s resilience and restore the prospects for Ukrainian gas production as a tool for diversification for European countries.
- The experience of decentralizing the energy system—from the individual household level to the national level—as a model for testing in other countries.
- Security and its components, including the creation of strategic equipment reserves as an essential element of energy security.
In conclusion, speaking about future potential and recovery, Olena Pavlenko noted that Ukraine has a strong foundation for innovation and the development of various elements of the energy sector. Therefore, it is necessary to seek ways to attract new investments.
The full discussion featuring representatives from CSIS, the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine, and the Institute for Economic Research can be viewed here.
Participation in the discussion was made possible thanks to the support of the International Renaissance Foundation as part of the project “Strengthening the Resilience of Ukraine’s Energy Sector”.
