COVID-19 is a threat to Ukraine’s electricity market as well as its citizens’ health. Because of higher energy use and lower bill payment, electricity companies and utilities are building up debt, which is a major risk to market stability. The USAID Energy Security Project (ESP) has proposed a list of strategies to tackle the most urgent problems and keep the market on track for the rest of the pandemic.
ESP experts emphasize the importance of both immediate and medium-term actions. The recommendations will keep companies and utilities from defaulting on their debts and prevent excessive fines for payments that are late because of COVID-19. This is especially important for distribution system operators and universal service suppliers, which provide electricity to households and public institutions.
Ukraine’s regulator, the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission (NEURC), has already adopted these recommendations and is working to mitigate COVID-19’s impact on the country.
ESP has updated its Action Roadmap to use in discussions with donors, the Government of Ukraine and NEURC about how to respond to these challenges.