EU-backed program to replace incandescent bulbs with LED lamps starts in Ukraine

MOSCOW. Jan 30 (Interfax) - Starting from January 30, Ukrainian citizens will be able to exchange five old incandescent lamps for LED lamps as part of a program seen as an important step toward reducing the load in Ukraine's energy system, Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yulia Sviridenko said.

"Today, there are already 6.6 million lamps at Ukrposhta offices. As part of this program, 20 million lamps will be delivered to Ukraine before the end of February alone," Ukrainian media quoted Sviridenko as saying at the program's presentation in Kiev on Monday.

All Ukrainian regional centers, except for those that are not controlled by Kiev, currently have LED lamps for this free exchange program, she said.

The new program is financed by the European Union and is part of the EU's support for the Ukrainian energy sector. The EU plans to provide 30 million LED lamps to Ukraine.

Ukrainians can exchange incandescent bulbs for LED lamps at Ukrposhta offices as part of the program, which will gradually spread to all regions of the country. At its first stage, LED lamps will be delivered to regional centers which consume a larger amount of electricity, as well as to Kramatorsk, Pokrovsk and Krivoi Rog.

Deputy Prime Minister and Digital Transformation Minister Mikhail Fyodorov, for his part, said that, using the Diia application, Ukrainians may apply for a free-of-charge replacement of five old incandescent bulbs and then receive new LED lamps at an Ukrposhta office.