On December 8, 2022, in Lviv, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink and USAID/Ukraine Mission Director James Hope briefed the journalists about USAID-funded aid – 30 excavators that USAID has provided to 25 district heating companies across Ukraine to repair heating networks damaged by russia’s aggression. The excavators, donated by the American people through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and its Energy Security Project, valued at 2 million USD, will help Ukraine’s district heating companies resume the supply of heat and hot water to the Ukrainian people during winter. It is part of a broader effort by the U.S. Government, including USAID, to provide Ukraine with energy repair equipment, power generators, winter clothing, and other assistance needed for winter.
The russian military has damaged about half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. With each subsequent attack, the system requires repairs, often with pipe replacement and restoration of networks. To promptly respond to emergencies and replace damaged pipes, Ukrainian local authorities and energy companies need pipe-pulling machinery, in addition to other equipment vital for energy sector functioning and minimizing the consequences of a partial blackout.
USAID’s assistance of 30 excavators will help district heating companies of Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Korosten, Vasylkiv, Brovary, Bila Tserkva, Dnipro, Poltava, Kremenchuk, Bilgorod-Dnistrovskyi, Kovel, Ternopil, Kropyvnytskyi, Lutsk, Rivne, Vatutine, Okhtyrka, Mykolayiv, Khmelnytskyi and Zaporizhzhia to shorten the interruption time to heat and hot water supply for households and infrastructure.
“To help the Ukrainian people get through this difficult winter, the United States is surging support to Ukraine to help stabilize and repair electricity, heating and gas networks around the country,” said U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink. “Just last week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new $53 million commitment for electricity sector equipment. This builds on more than 1,000 power generators for communities, heating companies, and health facilities in 21 oblasts across Ukraine. Our support also includes heavy machinery, like the 30 excavators USAID recently delivered to 24 cities to help them promptly repair damaged heating networks and resume heat and hot water supplies.”
Since all repair and restoration works are closely connected to power outage schedules and are aimed at stabilizing the power system, the excavators provided by USAID will significantly help local communities to fix repairs and resume heat and hot water supplies, ensuring the communities’ population stay warm during the winter.
As stated by the Acting Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine Vasyl Lozynskyi, “In the conditions of missile attacks on the critical infrastructure of Ukraine, the assistance of international partners is extremely important for us. As a result of the shelling, the country’s critical infrastructure, in particular heat supply infrastructure, suffered significant damage. Also, a lot of utility machinery so necessary for prompt repair work was destroyed. We thank the US Government and USAID for providing machinery that will accelerate repair work and restore the heat and hot water supply to the homes of Ukrainians.”
First Deputy Mayor of Lviv Andrii Moskalenko underlined, “In difficult times, the support of partners is important. We are grateful to the US government, the US Embassy in Ukraine, and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for their invaluable assistance to Ukraine in these difficult times. Lviv is actively working on the city’s readiness for new potential threats. We are ready to ensure the life of the city in various conditions. Thanks to a new package of assistance from the USAID Energy Security Project, the municipal utility company received equipment that is already operating today to provide alternative heating. We hope that our cooperation will actively expand to other areas. Already today, we are planning joint projects on the creation and development of new enterprises in the medical and social spheres.”
According to Valentyn Volskyi, Director of Lvivteploenergo, “The received machinery will help us ensure the operation of critical infrastructure in emergency situations. The delivered excavator is already working on the construction of one of Lviv’s solid fuel boiler houses.”