Ukraine hopes to receive 415 mln euros from foreign partners to restore energy sector
MOSCOW. Dec 14 (Interfax) - Ukraine expects to receive 415 million euros in aid from foreign partners to rebuild its energy infrastructure, Ukrainian media reported, citing Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko.
"[...] our needs are growing every week. The priority is high-voltage equipment, but there is also a need for other equipment and spare parts to repair the networks. The 415-million-euro support announced at the conference in Paris [held on December 13] will greatly help restore the Ukrainian energy sector," Galushchenko was quoted as saying in a statement on the website of the Ukrainian Energy Ministry.
The minister added that Ukraine also needs gas turbine and gas piston units, which will help ensure the stable operation of the energy system. Currently, 50% of the country's energy infrastructure is damaged.
Ukraine also counts on covering the electricity shortage by importing the resource from Europe and needs a decision of the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) to increase its technological capabilities for this purpose.
"There is electricity in Europe, it is available. Meanwhile, [...] the Ukrainian electric power industry has a deficit, which it would like to compensate for with possible imports to the utmost extent," Galushchenko said.
That will help Ukraine stably live through the winter, he said. Still, that would require a decision of ENTSO-E to increase the interstate connection capacity.
"For now, we are limited to the amounts, which are much smaller than our technical capacity," Galushchenko said.
Financing is another key issue in electricity imports, he added.
As reported earlier with reference to Ukrenergo CEO Vladimir Kudritsky, the company allows for imports of 500-600 MW of electricity from Europe but that requires a special mechanism, as electricity prices in Europe are higher than they are in Ukraine. This kind of mechanism is being developed.
It is unlikely that anyone in Ukraine would want to buy electricity from Europe on general commercial terms, he said.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said that the country needed to import up to 2 GW of electricity from Europe at least until the end of this heating season, evaluating its financing needs at 800 million euros.