Some 30-40% equity, other conditions required for energy projects to be financed by EBRD in Ukraine – associate director
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will consider financing renewable energy projects and energy storage systems (ESS) in Ukraine provided several conditions are met: at least 30-40% equity, experience in Ukraine's energy sector, high-quality project preparation, and clear implementation schedules, EBRD Associate Director Olha Yeriomina said.
"For us to start looking at a project, we need, at minimum, an understanding that the sponsor has at least 30-40% of their own capital for it. Batteries (ESS) are a fairly volatile business, and we are simultaneously looking at possibilities for grant co-financing for such projects," Yeriomina said during an online presentation at Energy Storage Day-2026, organized by the Ukrainian Wind Energy Association in Kyiv on Monday.
Furthermore, previous experience in the energy sector, specifically in Ukraine, is important for the bank.
"Practice shows that investors who have not dealt with energy projects, or even those who have but in other countries, do not realize the scale of the difficulties they will face in Ukraine's energy sector. It would be good for project owners to understand the industry they are entering and know the country and how to work in it," she explained.
The banker also said that projects must already be prepared, specifically having an implementation schedule and secured connection, and the future equipment must be acceptable to the bank "from a technical standpoint and from a cybersecurity standpoint."
"We serve those clients who are ready to move quickly and help Ukraine and its population in the coming autumn-winter periods," Yeriomina summarized.
She pointed out that the EBRD had previously moved quite quickly to finance a 70 MW project by Dragon Capital and former Ukrenergo head Volodymyr Kudrytskyy, which consists half of ESS and half of gas units.
"Through joint efforts, we accomplished this task and signed the loan agreement within 5.5 months of project initiation. The project is already under active construction and will be fully built soon, I hope. We will continue to work with the Dragon team and the Kudrytskyy team in the future," Yeriomina assured.
She added that the bank has a number of generation projects in its pipeline that are in the active stage of preparation.
As reported, at the same event, Yeriomina said that the EBRD plans to hold the first auctions this year under the Ukraine Risk Mitigation Mechanism (URMM) for renewable energy, supporting approximately 1 GW of capacity in the first phase.
This mechanism involves guaranteeing market risks by providing minimum electricity price guarantees to renewable energy producers and protecting them from market fluctuations.
Yeriomina said that support auctions are primarily designed for wind projects, as well as solar projects built with energy storage systems. Stand-alone ESS are unlikely to participate in this mechanism.
According to her, the details of this mechanism are currently being worked out, although the general scheme is clear: it will be support for approximately 15 years under a scheme similar to contracts for difference. She also urged current and potential investors to participate in consultations for such auctions.
Dragon Capital, the investment company of Tomáš Fiala, and Negen, an energy company co-founded by former Ukrenergo CEO Volodymyr Kudrytskyy, signed a Mandate Letter at the URC-2025 in Rome on July 10 regarding a EUR 21.1 million loan for the Power One project. On November 14, 2025, Power One signed a loan agreement with the EBRD for EUR 22.3 million for a project to build 68 MW of decentralized generation in Zakarpattia region.
This initiative also received grant funding of EUR 3 million from the EBRD Crisis Response Special Fund, supported by the Norwegian government.
The project involves the installation of 36.8 MW of gas piston units (GPU) and 31.5 MW of energy storage systems (ESS) and could become Ukraine's first large-scale complex combining these two types of generation into a single system to ensure power grid stability and flexibility.
