At the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Washington, DC, Yulia Burmistenko, Head of International Affairs at our energy company DTEK, set out how Ukraine is building a new, diversified energy system while defending the old one against russian attacks. The World Bank estimates the sector will need $91 billion of investment, with clear projects — including two from DTEK — to be presented at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk.
Why is Ukraine building a new energy system during the war?
Last winter, DTEK worked around the clock to keep the lights on in Ukraine. As Ms Burmistenko told the Forum, that effort serves a larger purpose: winning the time to build a new system. russia knows Ukraine's old energy infrastructure and how to hit it. The system now taking shape is diversified and harder to target, built with international technology partners including Vestas, supplying wind turbines, and Fluence, supplying battery storage.
How big is the investment opportunity in Ukraine's energy sector?
The World Bank estimates that Ukraine's energy sector will require $91 billion of investment — a major opportunity for foreign companies. These opportunities will be presented as clear projects at the forthcoming Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk, Poland, two of them from DTEK. Ms Burmistenko said DTEK would welcome international financial institutions contributing their expertise and participating actively across both debt and equity financing.
What does recovery look like on the ground?
Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt, Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center and former US Ambassador to Ukraine, described a recent visit to Bucha, destroyed by russia in 2022. Following DTEK's installation of new electricity infrastructure, he found life returning to the town: new apartments, new supermarkets, a community rebuilding.
Why is Ukraine the obvious choice for foreign energy investors?
Panellists agreed that in Ukraine, business and building can move faster than anywhere else in Europe. The country offers every resource the sector needs: highly educated and motivated people, untapped hydrocarbon reserves, land for wind turbines and sunny regions for solar. As Europe faces a gap when russian energy imports end, Ukraine is the obvious choice to fill it. Working with international partners to build back better is the long-standing strategy of SCM's shareholder Rinat Akhmetov.
