NewsletterNovember 2020www.energysecurityua.org

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CONTENT

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USAID ESP helps the Market Operator achieve international anti-bribery certification and adopt international financial reporting standards

Repair vehicles and traveling lab mobilize to respond to heating emergencies

USAID ESP helps Kyivteploenergo to reach 10% more consumers without using more gas

New bachelor’s degree program to prepare the next generation of renewable energy engineers

USAID ESP introduces more youth to careers in energy

A better approach to monitoring ancillary services

Ukrainian journalists learn about energy innovations and energy efficiency

Building Energy Sustainability and Empowering Women in Amalgamated Communities

Online Marathon for Youth Aspiring to Energy Careers

Off to a Strong Start: The Ukrainian Wholesale Electricity Market’s First Year

USAID ESP shares the first videos from online course on energy journalism

Breaking gender stereotypes

Grant for creation of a modern education and research center

Grant and procurement opportunities

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USAID ESP helps the Market Operator achieve international anti-bribery certification and adopt international financial reporting standards

With USAID ESP support and in cooperation with the Professional Evaluation and Certification Board of Ukraine, the Market Operator (MO) has been audited for its Anti-Bribery Certification. After responding to any issues found in the initial audit, the MO will move to the next phase: a certification audit. According to the ISO 37001 standard, obtaining this certificate will prove that the MO uses ISO-level anti-bribery systems, which will reduce the risk of corruption and demonstrate the MO’s commitment to controlling corruption.

At the same time, USAID ESP is helping the MO adopt international financial reporting standards (IFRS). These standards will help the MO establish a transparent and reliable accounting system and financial reporting framework. In November, USAID ESP procured software for IFRS reporting and agreed on the first version of a new accounting policy. Next steps are transforming financial statements and finalizing the accounting policy after adjustments. The transition to IFRS is expected to be complete by March 2021, including personnel training.

Photo: Nichapa-stock.adobe.com

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Repair vehicles and traveling lab mobilize to respond to heating emergencies

The USAID Energy Security Project (ESP) handed over three emergency repair vehicles and one mobile diagnostic laboratory to Kyivteploenergo (KTE) for responding to heating emergencies. All four vehicles are fitted with digging, cutting, and welding equipment along with emergency lighting, a portable generator, power tools, and pipeline sections and valves. With these new tools, Kyivteploenergo can quickly detect and address emergencies and improve its heat supply services.

Photo by Kara Wayman, USAID ESP Photo by Ihor Kasian, USAID ESP

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USAID ESP helps Kyivteploenergo to reach 10% more consumers without using more gas

USAID ESP helped to develop design documents for the Kyiv heat supply system rehabilitation program. The rehabilitation, made possible with a €140 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is installing a condensing economizer at the combined heat-and-power plant 5 (CHP-5), moving consumers to more efficient district boiler houses, installing hot water storage tanks at another plant – CHP-6, and implementing a SCADA (automation) system at KTE.

This month, the documents needed to install a condensing economizer (which will let the combined heat-and-power plant use flue gas heat from its boiler) passed the public hearings and environmental impact assessment from the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine.

With these documents in hand, KTE will be able to procure and install the economizer. Using low-potential flue gas heat will increase the power unit’s efficiency by 10%, which means providing heat to 10% more consumers without increasing the amount of gas used.

Photo by Dmytro Kyrylichev, USAID ESP

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New bachelor’s degree program to prepare the next generation of renewable energy engineers

USAID ESP grantee, the Ivano-Frankivsk University of Oil and Gas (IFNTUOG), recruited the first cohort of students to its new bachelor’s degree program in Renewable Energy Engineering. The students started their classes in September, while the program was officially launched on World Science Day: November 10, 2020. Project experts reviewed the curriculum and recommended topics to study, and the university is inviting professors who specialize in renewable energy engineering. USAID ESP has equipped the new program’s laboratories with modern training and simulation equipment, including computers and specialized software. This new Bachelor’s Program will help Ukraine meet the engineers’ needs to develop cost-effective renewable energy resources.

Photo story is available via the link.

Photo: IFNTUOG Photo: IFNTUOG

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USAID ESP introduces more youth to careers in energy

A countrywide school survey this month found that even though more than half of young people (aged 9 to 19) consider the energy sector to be essential for society, less than 1% express a desire to work in the industry. At the same time, more than 40% of the 190 respondents would like to know more about energy career possibilities.

On November 27, USAID ESP and CSR Ukraine presented a booklet about energy professions titled “Your Future in the Electricity Sector,” part of the STEM Girls in Energy initiative under a USAID ESP grant. At the presentation, project Chief of Party Dean White underlined the range and diversity of opportunities in the energy sector and emphasized that although energy is still male dominated, the initiative and the booklet can break gender stereotypes and help girls choose careers in energy.

The booklet helps youth navigate among electricity sector professions and links to information about professional growth opportunities, educational programs, online courses, and energy innovations.

EnergySecurityProject

YOUR FUTURE IN

ELECTRICITY SECTOR

This booklet has been developed by the USAID ESP grantee CSR Ukraine in Ukrainian for a Ukrainian audience. No translations will be available under the scope of this grant.

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A better approach to monitoring ancillary services

USAID ESP has been working closely with Ukraine’s electricity transmission system operator, NEC Ukrenergo, to develop an ancillary services market (ASM). An ASM supports system balancing, which maintains the stability of frequency, voltage, and interconnection exchange. Ancillary services include everything that supports the stable operation of the power system or restoring the system to stable operation after a problem, such as frequency regulation (spinning reserves, replacement reserves, etc.).

Recently, the project developed an open-source algorithm to evaluate power plant data to ensure that ancillary services meet quantity and quality requirements, and that all services are paid for on time. USAID ESP is now working with Ukrenergo to test this software on actual datasets provided by the power plants.

Photo: YELANTSEV-stock.adobe.com

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Ukrainian journalists learn about energy innovations and energy efficiency

This month, USAID Energy Security Project and the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine trained journalists on energy sector innovations and district heating, part of the joint educational initiative “Transparency and Technical Literacy in Energy Journalism.” More than thirty participants from national and local media took part in each of the two webinars.

During the Energy Sector Innovations webinar, journalists heard from the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Hydrogen Council and an independent media expert. Speakers discussed the national gas transmission system and Ukraine’s potential to export green hydrogen to the European Union, as the European Commission named the country a priority partner in developing hydrogen energy.

In the webinar on modernizing district heating, speakers included top officials from the State Energy Efficiency Fund, Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, Ministry of Energy, National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission, an independent media trainer and USAID ESP’s district heating expert. The participants discovered how to make buildings more energy efficient and how modernizing generation can reduce heat losses. They also learned about various institutions’ plans to reconstruct heating networks. Both speakers and participants paid special attention to how heat and water tariffs are formed, a particular topic of consumer interest.

youtube.com / USAID Energy Security Project

This video has been developed by the USAID ESP grantee National Union of Journalists of Ukraine in Ukrainian (NUJU) for a Ukrainian audience. No translations will be available under the scope of this grant.

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This infographic was presented by the USAID ESP grantee NGO Security Expert Centre – Ukraine for a Ukrainian audience. No translations will be available under the scope of this grant.

Online Marathon for Youth Aspiring to Energy CareersOn November 25, USAID ESP and NGO STAN launched its first innovative online energy marathon for young people planning their career in Ukraine’s energy sector. The marathon, part of the “Young Energy: New Skills for Future Energy Sector Cadres” initiative, consists of nine webinars in November and December. The initiative aims to foster out-of-the-box thinking and innovative approaches to energy by pairing youth between 16 and 25 years with mentors working in the sector; the marathon’s 50 participants will have a chance to learn from energy experts and professionals throughout the industry.

Photo: STAN

Building Energy Sustainability and Empowering Women in Amalgamated Communities

USAID ESP and the NGO Security Expert Centre – Ukraine conducted an online training on energy sustainabilit y and women’s leadership for 14 amalgamated communities from Mykolaiv, Kherson, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Zaporizhia, and Cherkasy. For three days, participants discussed the energy self-sufficiency of these communities and women’s role in decision-making on energy projects.

Community representatives gained practical communication and conflict resolution skills, discussed the challenges of women’s leadership in the energy sector, and examined the need to modernize infrastructure in the face of climate change. Trainers shared information with local female leaders on opportunities to participate in international grant programs, create teams with foreign colleagues and jointly seek international donors’ support. Participants also learned step-by-step legal actions to protect consumers’ interests in energy and utilities.

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Off to a Strong Start: The Ukrainian Wholesale Electricity Market’s First YearUkraine as a member of the Energy Community has committed to implementing the principles of the European Union (EU) Third Energy Package. This includes unbundling energy generation and supply, increasing electricity market transparency, strengthening consumer protection rules, developing more effective and independent national regulatory authorities, and improving cross-border collaboration and investment.

In 2013, the Ukrainian Parliament moved to liberalize the country’s wholesale electricity market and promote competition. To integrate with the European network, Ukraine started to build competitive retail and wholesale electricity markets. Parliament introduced the Law on the Electricity Market in 2017 to eliminate the single-buyer model and introduce pro-market elements that would promote competition.

On July 1, 2019, Ukraine launched the new Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM). The USAID Energy Security Project (ESP), implemented by Tetra Tech, has supported the effort by providing legislative expertise, helping implement the new law, and facilitating the market’s launch in “safe mode” to prevent sudden price increases.

Under the old single-buyer model, the government set prices throughout the system: from generation to end-users. This created the opportunity for political, investment, and corruption risks, including the abuse of monopoly power. The new model created the grounds for competition development among electricity suppliers and allowed consumers to choose their supplier on a competitive basis.

According to a USAID ESP analysis and based on international experience, the WEM has functioned quite efficiently in its first year of operation, though there’s a lot of work ahead to strengthen its potential. USAID ESP has proposed a WEM roadmap to gradually eliminate market distortions and increase market transparency. This would include implementing the EU Regulation on Wholesale Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT) for efficient market monitoring and surveillance by regulators, such as establishing a Market Data/Transparency Platform. The next key steps are further development of cross-border capacity auctions with neighboring EU countries and development of market coupling.

USAID Enrgy Security Project

USAID Enrgy Security Project

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These videos have been developed by the USAID ESP grantee National Union of Journalists of Ukraine in Ukrainian (NUJU) for a Ukrainian audience. No translations will be available under the scope of this grant.

USAID ESP shares the first videos from online course on energy journalism

USAID Energy Security Project and the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine have developed a series of videos for an online course in energy journalism, which is part of the “Transparency and Technical Literacy in Energy Journalism” initiative. The publicly available talks include:

“How to choose a gas supplier for a consumer,” with Oleksandr Ovdienko, Senior Gas Expert, USAID ESP

“What’s new in the relationship between consumers and providers of housing and communal services in 2020?” with Natalia Khotsianivska, Deputy Minister of Communities and Territories Development

“How the state ensures competition in energy markets and protects consumer rights,” with Olga Babiy, Member of the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission (NEURC)

“Energy of the future: new opportunities and new challenges for Ukraine,” with Yaroslav Demchenkov, Deputy Minister of Energy for European Integration

youtube.com / USAID Energy Security Project youtube.com / USAID Energy Security Project youtube.com / USAID Energy Security Project youtube.com / Energy Security Project

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Breaking gender stereotypes

Grant for creation of a modern education and research centerUSAID ESP signed a grant agreement with the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine to create a competitive educational and research center that will carry out basic and applied research for the electric power sector. After launching the lab, the university will organize a conference to present it to students majoring in energy and will hold two contests highlighting students works on energy-related topics.

Photo: NUBiP

This article has been developed by media https://ua-energy.org in Ukrainian for a Ukrainian audience. No translation is available.

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This newsletter is made possible by the support of the American People through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of Tetra Tech ES, Inc. and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.

Grant and procurement opportunities

Request for Applications on development and implementation of the Communication strategy for the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine

Request for Applications “Support to improving district heating tariff setting framework implemented by NEURC”

Request for Applications to Develop Design Documentation for District Heating Facilities

USAID Energy Security Project USAID Energy Security Project USAID Energy Security Project

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