EU exploring offers to Ukraine in terms of energy support – EC Vice President
The European Commission is considering offers to Ukraine in the field of supporting its energy sector as this issue was discussed in detail at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin on June 11-12, as well as on its sidelines.
Executive Vice President of the European Commission Maros Sefcovic said this in a comment to Ukrinform.
These days, according to him, European colleagues are focusing their attention on the challenges that Ukraine faces in the energy sector.
"I have already discussed with my colleagues in the Commission what we can do to increase the flow of electricity to Ukraine, because we know they need it... We have to look at the capacity of our interconnectors, this should also be done by transmission system operators, to make this happen," said the EC vice president.
Another very important element, he noted, was the request from Ukraine to see what Europe can share in terms of decommissioned or currently unused power plants, turbines, substations, and other equipment, so that Ukrainians have the opportunity to quickly repair their power plants devastated by Russian missiles and drones.
This is what must be done between now and winter, Sefcovic stressed.
In the medium- and long-term perspective, parties in Berlin actively discussed the prospects of how to use Ukrainian underground gas storage facilities, which the official called a huge asset not only for Ukraine, but also for the whole of Europe. These facilities are the largest in all of Europe, he recalled.
These three aspects were discussed, in particular, at a panel with the participation of the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, Olha Stefanishyna, and became part of a larger discussion on how to guarantee Ukraine's membership in the European Union.
The deputy head of the EC thanked the Ukrainian participants for making it clear what Ukraine needs and how tough its struggle is.
In addition to the Conference, Sefcovic also took part in other related events. In particular, this was a high-level discussion organized by the European-Ukrainian Energy Transition Center (EUETH), which focused on the need for close cooperation between Ukrainian, European, and transatlantic partners in order to ensure rapid implementation of reforms necessary for Ukraine to restore a functioning energy market, align with EU rules, and achieve its own climate goals. He said that based on the already accelerated market integration of the Ukrainian energy system, the energy sector will become a key driver of Ukraine's integration into the European Union and transformation of both the European and Ukrainian economies.