Over two years of Energy Support Fund's existence, donors from Europe, USA contribute almost EUR 400 mln – Ministry of Energy
Over the two years of the Ukraine Energy Support Fund's existence, donors from almost all countries of the European Union, the UK and the United States, international and regional organizations and companies have contributed more than EUR 393 million to it, and including interest of almost EUR 397 million, the Ministry of Energy reported.
He told Interfax-Ukraine that the largest sponsor since 2022 is Germany, institutions and organizations from which have transferred EUR 225 million to the Fund.
The Ministry of Energy said that in the near future the Fund will also receive previously announced contributions, as a result of which more than EUR 400 million will be accumulated in it.
The ministry explained that the Fund's money is placed in a special account in one of the Austrian banking institutions, the sole holder of which is the Energy Community Secretariat. The Secretariat manages the Fund's funds on behalf of and on behalf of Ukraine's Ministry of Energy, the co-founder of the Fund and its sole beneficiary. Recipients of assistance are Ukrainian public and private energy companies, whose activities are critical to the integrity of the Ukrainian energy system. A working group created under the Ministry of Energy coordinates the processing of their requests.
"During its operation, this unique mechanism has become an effective tool for providing international assistance in the energy sector, thanks to which Ukrainian energy workers can recover from Russian attacks. This means providing Ukrainians with light and heat in difficult times," the Ministry of Energy said.
The ministry said that more funds from the Fund were distributed to the urgent needs of companies from front-line regions and territories with a high level of threat of shelling and, as a result, destruction. Significant funding from the Fund has been allocated for the needs of power engineers in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Odesa, Kherson, Sumy and Kyiv regions, as well as the city of Kyiv.
As of early April 2024, Ukraine's Ministry of Energy had already processed requests from energy companies that were most affected by Russian shelling during February-March 2024. Accordingly, available funds from the Fund were distributed for the purchase of necessary assistance, the Ministry of Energy said.
As reported, the Ukraine Energy Support Fund was created under the Energy Community Secretariat in April 2022 on the joint initiative of Ukrainian Minister of Energy Herman Haluschenko and European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson.