The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through its Energy Security Project (ESP) handed over to one of the utility companies in Volyn Oblast a second cogeneration unit (CGU) to provide electricity to the quarterly boiler house of the local district heating company. The donation was made under the Memorandum of Cooperation between and is aimed at enhancing energy security and ensuring the sustainability and resilience of heat supply.
Thanks to the cogeneration units provided by USAID, the company will be able to provide consumers with heat and hot water even during interruptions or long-term emergency power outages. Moreover, the thermal energy generated by the CGU will be transferred to the general heating network for further supply to 45 residential buildings and 7 social facilities.
The first natural gas-fired CGU that produces heat and electricity was commissioned at the beginning of the year and enabled the utility to fully meet its own electricity needs for one of the city’s largest boiler houses and provide heat to 65 residential buildings, 74 legal entities, 11 educational institutions, and one medical facility. In March 2024, the efficient use of the first CGU alone enabled the company to save almost UAH 800 thousand. The company expects that during the following heating season, the CGU will allow it to save about UAH 4.4 million of the state funds. Thus, heat supply companies can reduce their electricity costs with the help of the delivered CGUs.
Efficient energy generation, reduced dependence on fossil fuels, decarbonization, and reliable access to heat and electricity for consumers are a few of the key aspects of USAID’s work in Ukraine, which the Agency carries out through the ESP. The international technical assistance project works with the government, local authorities, and utilities and provides emergency assistance to local communities and district heating companies (DHCs) in the form of cogeneration units, mobile boilers, and other equipment deliveries to meet the urgent needs of communities and increase the energy resilience of municipal critical infrastructure.
In partnership with the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy, Housing and Utilities, the Ministry for Communities, Territorial and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine (Ministry of Infrastructure), and the National Energy and Utility Regulatory Commission (NEURC), USAID ESP is implementing a program to deploy small and medium-sized cogeneration in Ukraine and assisting in legal reforms aimed at technical modernization and environmental sustainability of local district heating systems.
From October 2023 to February 2024, USAID through ESP purchased 91 cogeneration units for 32 Ukrainian cities and two universities to provide a stable heat supply for more than 1 million residents of apartment buildings and about 1,000 social facilities. At the same time, such units can provide backup power to neighboring hospitals, water supply, and sewage facilities.
USAID ESP has also initiated training for representatives of heat-generating companies on the installation of CGUs and the possibilities of using cogeneration to power critical infrastructure, developing efficient heat supply systems, for operators of small and medium-sized CGUs, envisaging their participation in the Ukrainian electricity markets.