National Commission for State Energy and Public Utilities Regulation cut "green" tariff by half

During the meeting on February 27 Commission decreased tariff for solar electricity by 55% and tariffs  for the rest of renewable and nontraditional sources - by 50%. It is considered as part of emergency measures, which are  implementing by government to stabilize economy. Read more at http://ua-energy.org

Ukrainian Energy Forum - diversifying supplies and increasing domestic production to achieve energy security

The Forum promises to be well timed, coming at the end of the crucial winter heating season and providing the ideal opportunity to judge how the country will have diversified supplies and coped. Other key issues that will be debated at length include:

• Will there be sufficient volumes of reverse suppliesfrom the EU? 
• Reform of the management of the gas transport and storage infrastructure 
• Updates from the PSAs and what new licence areas are forthcoming 
• Unconventional hydrocarbons – are we any closer to their commercial viability? 
• The temporary tax code for gas producers – has it impacted companies’ investment plans?

Read more at http://www.ukrainianenergy.com/

China to assist Ukraine with $3.6 billion for energy projects

hor Didenko, Ukraine’s deputy minister of energy, said that the China Development Bank and Ukraine’s Naftogaz signed a $3.6 billion credit line contract. Didenko said that the portfolio includes such projects as coal gasification in Odessa’s Port Plant, nine thermal power stations, the Poland-Ukraine gas pipe interconnector, environmentally friendly equipment and upgrades in Ukrgazvydobuvannya, an oil and gas company. Read more at http://www.kyivpost.com

EU is working on natural gas supply agreement with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan

Conflict in Ukraine has triggered intense concern about the reliability of exports from Russia, which supplies almost 27 per cent of the gas that the EU uses. Maros Sefcovic, the European Commission vice-president in charge of Europe’s energy agenda, emphasises the need to diversify away from Gazprom, Russia’s gas export monopoly.

Since taking on his portfolio late last year, Mr Sefcovic has prioritised the $45bn “southern corridor” pipelines that will bring gas into southeastern Europe from the Caspian Sea region and potentially the Middle East. The final section of this network will be the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, partly owned by BP, which will run to Italy and is due to provide Europe with 10bn cubic metres of Azeri gas by 2020.  Read more at http://www.ft.com/

State Agency for Energy Efficiency (SAEE) presented Road Map of Energy Efficiency Reforms

Road Map of Energy Efficiency Reforms was presented during the meeting organized by Committee on Fuel and energy Complex of Ukrainian Parliament. Road Map is based on over 40 legal acts developed and approved  by SAEE, including draft Laws on effective use of fuel and energy, on energy efficiency of buildings, on metering and monitoring of  heat and water consumption, etc. Read more at http://saee.gov.ua/

New IMF- Ukraine program and necessary reforms

On February 12 IMF replaced previous program, Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), with new one - Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement. SBA's term was 2 years, while EFF - 4 years. Financing amount under EFF is $17.5 billion, by $5.1 billion more than under SBA. It is also supposed that additional $22.5 billion will be provided under the program by other financial institutions and governments of some countries. To be able to receive IMF support Ukraine has to implement a number of reforms.  Read more at http://ua-energy.org

US State Department promises full support for Ukraine's initiatives to diversify energy supply and to reform natural gas sector

During the meeting with Minister of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine Volodymyr Demchyshyn Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs leading the Bureau of Energy Resources at the U.S. Department of State Amos J Hochstein said the US State Department promised full support for Ukraine's initiatives aimed at diversifying energy supplies.  Minister  highlighted the importance of involving the EU and the US in conducting joint operation and modernization of the gas transportation system of Ukraine. In particular, the Minister reported that the Ukrainian side was ready to discuss the proposals submitted by the U.S. State Department and Bureau of Energy Resources as to the provision of technical assistance for reforming the gas sector and gas infrastructure.  Read more at http://www.kmu.gov.ua

Energy prices and tariffs will rise according to agreement with IMF.

Minister of Energy and Coal Industry announced today that electricity tariff will grow by 40% starting from March 1.  During coming 2-3 years also natural gas price for residential use will be increased by 280% and heat tariff by 66%. It is expected that 12.5 billion Hryvnia  will be secured in the state budget to pay direct subsidies to low income families (5 million families). Read more at http://tsn.ua/

Ukraine and EBRD create Project Office for coordination of development and implementation of reforms

EBRD agreed to provide 1.5m euro for the Project Office for one year. Once this term expires, new negotiations will have to take place to decide whether to continue the project, depending on the success of implemented reforms. The new body will coordinate and monitor the process of development and implementation of reforms, as well as ensure necessary communication between executive and legislative branches, and between the government and the civic sector. Read more at http://uacrisis.org/

Price of natural gas imported from Europe is less than $300

According to Minister of Energy and Coal Industry, price of natural gas, which Ukraine buys from Europe, is less than $300 per thousand cubic meters, while price of natural gas from Russia in first quarter of 2015 is $365.  In February amount of natural gas imported from Europe significantly exceeded import from Russia.  Read more at http://ua-energy.org

Governments Agree the Negotiating Text for the Paris Climate Agreement

Delegates from 194 countries convened in Geneva to continue work following the Lima Climate Change Conference held in Peru last year, which had produced elements for the negotiating text–known as the Lima Call for Climate Action.  Nations concluded the Geneva Climate Change Talks by successfully preparing the negotiating text for the 2015 agreement. The agreement is set to be reached in Paris at the end of 2015 and will come into effect in 2020.  Read more at unfccc.int

Ukraine to raise $1 bln under state guarantees to create strategic energy reserves

The Ukrainian government intends to establish a reserve of gas or fuel oil worth $1 billion to provide the country with heat in the winter of 2015-2016, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has said. Read more at http://en.interfax.com.ua

Ukraine's IMF Bailout: Too Little Too Late

Ukraine and the IMF finally agreed on a new assistance program. In addition to last year’s IMF aid package (which had a headline value of $17.5 billion but only about $4.6 billion of which was actually extended),  $22 billion more will be provided.  Read more >>>
Forbes

NAFTOGAZ about increasing natural gaz price

According to NAFTOGAZ, real full cost of natural gas today, including capital cost, is 5430 Hrivnia per 1000 cubic meters. Creation of effective and transparent natural gas market will lead to increase of its extraction in Ukraine by 50% and reduction of consumption by 30%. Read more >>>
pravda.com.ua
dt.ua

 

Power generation in Ukraine in 2014

Power generation in January - December 2014  was about 182 billion  kW*hours, what is 6% lower than in 2013. 8 billion  kW*hours of electricity  were exported. Read more >>>
ua-energy.org


 

Ukraine's Economy Is Collapsing And The West Doesn't Seem To Care

The Hryvnia shed roughly 50% of its value over the course of just two days, a stunning rout that places the country a hair’s breadth away from default. Ukraine’s foreign currency reserves are now down to a minuscule $6.42 billion (and falling!), enough to cover just five weeks worth of imports. The usually accepted rule of thumb among economic analysts is that a country needs at least six months worth of “import cover,” and that anything less than 3 months is a crisis situation. Unless it receives substantial assistance in the immediate future, Ukraine will have less than a month’s worth of foreign currency: if reserves go much lower than they are at the moment, the country could quite literally run out of dollars and euros. Read more >>>

Forbes

Chernobyl's nuclear threat returns: Forest fires in Ukraine cause radioactive particles to be released over Europe

It's been 29 years since an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine released large doses of radiation across Europe. There is still an exclusion zone in place that measures approximately 1,000 square miles (2,600 square km) and surrounds the plant. But the effects of that devastating event could still be affecting the continent as a result of recent forest fires in Ukraine.  Read more >>>

Daily Mail

Coal production dropped by 22% in 2014

Web site of  the Ministry of Power and Coal Industry informs that coal extraction in Ukraine  in 2014 was 65.0 million ton, what is less by 18.7 million ton than it was in 2013. At the same time, according to the State Statistics Service 2014 annual coal extraction was 44.7 million ton.  Read more >>>
ua-energy.org

How much Ukraine pays for imported coal?

The average price of imported anthracite coal is $95 per tonne, says Ukrainian Minister of Energy and Coal Industry. Ukraine buys coal from Austrralia, South Africa, Kazakhstan and Russia. Read more >>>
ua-energy.org
 

Gazprom decreased natural gas price for Ukraine in first quarter of 2015 to $329

In the last quarter of 2014 natural gas price was $378 per thousand cubic meters.  Read more
epravda.com.ua

Ukrainian government plans to reform system of energy tariffs in 2015

Ukraine will have to reform the system of energy tariffs in 2015, Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatseniuk has said at a meeting of the National Council of Reforms in Kyiv.
"This year we need to adopt a law on the natural gas market and, in particular, reform the entire system of tariffs, provide social minimum assistance from the national budget to all categories of people who need it," he said.
Interfax-Ukraine

Over 4 GW of Solar Power Plants to be Built in Central Asia Up to 2020

In the next 5 years, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tadzhikistan and Iran will be in the spotlight of the largest international players of solar energy industry. In the next 5 years, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tadzhikistan and Iran will be in the spotlight of the largest international players of solar energy industry. In particular, in Azerbaijan, according to the state strategy of development of renewable energy, solar energy projects with a total installed capacity over 600 MW will be developed up to 2020. A number of pilot projects to be implemented in Kazakhstan by 2018 – PV plants with capacity of 200 MW will be built in different regions of the country. The same rate, Uzbekistan plans to achieve by 2019 plans. Read more >>>
www.cis-solar.com