Exclusive interview with Andreas Helbl, CEO of iC сonsulenten Ukraine, Managing Partner of CES clean energy solutions GesmbH, to the Interfax-Ukraine Agency

Author: Oksana Gryshyna

 

- In May 2022, the Austrian engineering and consulting company iC Ukraine, in cooperation with CES, announced their intention to develop a renovation concept for Trostianets City, pro bono. What tasks have been set for your team, and which of these have already been completed?

- iC Ukraine helps the city to develop a new strategic development plan until 2050. We have to analyse existing Master Plan (dtd 2015) and update it given the existing challenges and needs.

On the one hand, the war makes us alter some Master Plan items, on the other hand, some of its elements no longer meet modern approaches, needs, and requirements of both updated Ukrainian legislation and EU directives.

- Does the Trostianets Master Plan require significant changes? Have you suggested a lot of adjustments?

- No. The degree of our involvement implies the analysis of existing plan, in particular, in a view of all the things that have already happened. In a city that has followed its Plan step by step, it would be irrational to go against quite a successful implementation.

We believe that Ukrainian cities should develop in line with European ones, and thus reflect in their strategies the latest approaches to energy efficiency, power generation, sustainable planning based on security, reliable and comfortable urban living spaces.

- Which weaknesses has the war revealed?

- In terms of not only Trostianets or Ukraine in general, but this war has also revealed a weak point of the European Union – its energy sector. We should focus more on independence from fossil fuels, gas, and oil.

- Should every city become as autonomous as possible and be able to generate power to meet its critical needs?

- In fact, yes. But this does not mean that the autonomy of cities should contradict with the national energy development strategy. The energy infrastructure must have some central nodes.

However, of course, every city should strive to get the best of its potential to start such a transformation process in the most balanced way. To minimize the use of gas and to increase the use of renewable energy where it is possible. To enable such facilities as hospitals and residential buildings become their own power producers.

Surely, this transformation process will take more than just a couple of years. However, it is important to determine the path, which will enable goal achievement, thus becoming a gas-zero city, for example, by 2050, as in Trostianets’ case.

I would like to use Vienna as an example. It took us many years to discuss ways to get rid of gas heating. But only recently we have realized the necessity to significantly speed up the accomplishment of this task.

Trostianets has its own local features: many private houses are not connected to district heating system. There is a very small-sized system of centralised heat supply, which serves residential housing only in the city centre.

- Is this a benefit or a drawback for the task set?

- This simply sets a different starting point in terms of funding and the scale of change. In many cities in Ukraine, a significant percentage of housing    is connected to district heating. In Austria, we are not used to such a high rate.

In general, we should identify the principles, and then create scenarios and tools given the existing infrastructure. All of this will vary significantly from city to city.

- Apart from energy independence, what other crisis points have you identified in Trostianets?

- It is quite obvious that there are traffic issues to be resolved to overcome certain challenges in waste management. And, of course, mostly due to the damage caused, the issue of drainage and water supply is acute. Still, the issues I have mentioned are not directly related to the war or aggression outcomes. Most of them existed even before, and the war only made them more obvious.

Another important issue related to cities development is the way to reflect and address the issue of climate change for the next 30 years.

If we consider some new requirements of European directives, NBS (nature-based solutions) must be considered within urban planning. In NBS, they use or simulate natural processes to maintain water availability (such as soil moisture retention, and groundwater recharge), improve water quality (namely, natural and constructed wetlands, and coastal buffer strips), and reduce risks related to disasters due to water and climate change (floodplain restoration, green roofs, etc. – IF).

- These are large-scale changes that require significant funding.

- Sure, as it is necessary to create a pool of ideas or topics that may be of interest to investors, partners, and international organizations. We hope that in the near future they will be able to choose a certain area or a project and work on it.

You should bear in mind that we do not make feasibility studies or terms of reference separately for each of these areas. Our task is to identify and outline a scope of issues, while those who will be directly responsible for or will implement the project (for example, an investor) will “dig” deeper, develop it, raise funding, etc.

But the entire harmonious comprehensive concept of the city development must be described, and the story of Trostianets future must be told.

- That is, the search for potential investors should begin at the stage of defining key areas?

- Exactly, as it is important. We do not deal with this issue, but there are many parallel processes going on in Trostianets, as they are urgent, critical, or priority issues to be dealt with by the local government right now. Our task is to give the city a tool to promote itself and to raise funds within the framework (areas) of the general vision of the city's future. Not to invest in anything out of balance or out of the scope of its development strategy.

- What stage are you at now?

- We have developed and created a vision for each area. And we got our first feedback from the city regarding urban planning, the energy sector, water supply and treatment.

By way of example: we created the gas zero vision, which implies the development of power production and gas-free heat supply. We suggested this vision having analysed the city situation, its available resources, potential, etc. And the first feedback we got was that a gas-free strategy is impossible to implement. Then we had information meetings, at which the city agreed that a long-term strategy implying a gas-free future, does make sense.

- What was suggested in terms of city planning?

- Following our first urban planning meetings, the city liked the idea of uniting its two cores – the historical and the transport centres (by the railway station). The idea was not enough here, for its implementation it was necessary to think over transport options, interchanges, bike lanes, and green pedestrian zones so that you could walk or quickly get to the heart of the city, and it really would become a unified big centre.

Let me give you another example. We have discussed the road they planned to build in the city centre. However, following our discussions, everyone finally agreed that this should not be done. Instead, it was better to get rid of excess traffic and allocate the territory as a pedestrian zone.

Water supply and the quality of available water play an important role in the city infrastructure. We suggested to change the location of the water intake, and the city agreed, as it was clear that the restoration of the existing facility would require significant investments. It was more logical to simply move this infrastructure facility outside the central part of the city.

Another issue is waste processing. We have conducted an interviewing of city dwellers on the streets of Trostianets. Residents of the city would like to have a new waste processing plant or at least another place for a landfill. But no one has yet developed this idea. The desire of the citizens is one thing, but the search for an economically sound solution is a completely different task. However, we will definitely include this into our recommendations. We have also made an initial assessment of investments to construct separate waste collection and sorting lines.

- The top issue is the population. Today, Trostianets is practically a single-industry city...

- In general, the city has a good plan on education system improvement. Undoubtedly, many development plans are linked to the existing Mondelēz industry, related companies, and the agricultural sector of Trostianets.

We are currently discussing with the city the idea of creating a Trostianets brand, we see a huge potential in the tourism and event industry.

By the way, at the state level in Ukraine, certain forecasts regarding the number of the population were made, and they were not too positive. But at the last meeting, the city’s leaders announced that they were expecting an inflow of displaced persons.

We analyse three scenarios: one considers keeping the population at the current level, and the other two are pessimistic and optimistic scenarios.

- Could you give the number of the pessimistic scenario?

- I would like not to give any specific numbers now. The pessimistic scenario involves a decrease in population related to a decline in business activity in the region or other factors. But the most important thing is that the city itself is mega-active in many issues. We see that Trostianets has been following its strategy for many years, which is not very typical for Ukraine, to tell the truth. Therefore, we do believe that the plan based on the optimistic scenario is also possible to implement, and satisfactory population growth can be expected in the next ten years.

- Is the optimistic scenario based on the fact that Ukrainians return home?

- Many people will require stability and security, and Trostianets will be able to offer these to them. If you look at the current Master Plan, including some of our ideas, you will see that Trostianets holds great potential to become a very green, environmentally safe, comfortable for living, and family-friendly city.

- You still work on the plan development. When do you plan to present it?

- If our work continues in the current mode, it will take another two or three months.

The Master Plan-2050 itself will be presented by the city. If it agrees with our proposals and invites us to tell the public about it, we will join the presentation.

With the participation of CFI, Agence française de développement médias, as part of the Hub Bucharest Project with the support of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs