Oschadbank, ECU partner on joint program to develop energy infrastructure in local communities
Oschadbank and the state energy trader Energy Company of Ukraine (ECU) have signed a memorandum of cooperation aimed at streamlining procedures and improving lending conditions for new energy projects in Ukraine's territorial communities.
According to ECU's press release on Thursday, the two parties have launched a joint program designed to simplify the financing and implementation of energy projects at the community level. Under the memorandum, ECU will conduct economic and technical assessments of community-initiated projects seeking financing. Additionally, the company will offer market-driven tools to enhance the economic efficiency and sustainability of these projects. These tools include cooperation within self-generation mechanisms, aggregated and balancing groups. The economic models developed by ECU will serve as the basis for Oschadbank's financial evaluation of the projects' profitability and payback potential when making lending decisions.
"From our experience, one of the key barriers to the development of decentralized energy generation is the lack of relevant expertise in the vast majority of small communities. By leveraging ECU's specialized knowledge, communities will be able to assess the potential of their own energy projects, which can not only ensure uninterrupted power supply or replace external energy sources with local generation but also generate revenue for the community budget," commented Yuriy Katsion, Deputy Chairman of Oschadbank's Management Board responsible for corporate business.
He added that Oschadbank has extensive expertise in handling energy projects of any complexity, with a market share of over 31% in this sector.
Vitaliy Butenko, CEO of ECU, emphasized that the company continuously explores and develops market-oriented solutions to strengthen energy security for communities. He noted that combining ECU's in-depth market expertise with Oschadbank's robust financial platform creates the conditions for win-win solutions in one of the most complex yet strategically vital sectors of energy supply.
