Razumkov Centre Forecasts Additional 1% Annual Growth of Ukrainian GDP

November 29, 2018

28 November 2018, Washington DC

The launching in 2019 of the new electricity market model may ensure the further annual growth of Ukrainian GDP for no less than 1%. This could be achieved by improving the investment conditions to attract the funds into upgrading the structure and increasing the volume of electricity trading.

The attractive investment conditions would be created by way of implementing the transparent and competitive instruments of the electricity market functioning, simplifying the procedure of connecting the new industrial enterprises to the network and expanding the transboundary trading.

This would add to ensuring the balanced operation of the energy system, as well as enhancing its reliability and sustainability.

Reforming the electricity market would contribute to synchronous operation of Ukraine and Moldova’s electrical grids with the ENTSO-E. Provided all of the stakeholders cooperate effectively, this goal can be achieved by 2023. The utmost power transmission capacity under the complete synchronization in export-import operation mode is projected to reach 4GW. The integration would result in increasing the trading volume by 6 times — from $ 250 million to $ 1.5 billion.

The new market operational rules would make a consumer eligible for selecting its own electricity supplies. For one thing, the EU consumers would get the additional opportunity to buy significant volumes of electricity from Ukraine i.e. increase of the supply to their benefit. On the other hand, the EU energy generating companies would get an open access to Ukrainian market.

“Implementing the new electricity market model would be a turning point for the country’s energy sector. The brand new opportunities for consumers and investors will open” — summarized Volodymyr Omelchenko, Director of Energy Programmes at the Razumkov Centre.

This message was shared by the participants of the Conference “The State of Ukraine’s Energy Sector”, which was held in Atlantic Council Headquarters (Washington DC) and was devoted to the role of Ukraine in the global energy processes.

The key speakers were: Ambassador Richard Morningstar, Founding Director and Chairman of Global Energy Center (Atlantic Council), Mr. Edward Chow, Non-resident Senior Associate, Energy and National Security, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Dr. Ariel Cohen, Senior Fellow, Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council. The Conference moderators were: Dr. Anders Aslund, Senior Fellow, Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council and Melinda Haring, Editor, Ukraine Alert, Atlantic Council.

The Conference included two panel discussions based on the paper presentation “The Role and Place of Ukraine’s Energy Sector in Global Energy Processes” delivered by experts of the Razumkov Centre’s Energy Programmes: Volodymyr Omelchenko, Victor Logatskiy, Svitlana Chekunova and Maksym Biliavskyi.

The first one was concentrated on discussing the Ukrainian Energy Sector: Opportunities for Expansion and Investment and the second one — on Ukrainian Energy Sector in the Global Context.