The municipal company Kyivteploenergo has appealed to the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission of Ukraine (NEURC) and law enforcement agencies on the fact of non-payment by Euro-Reconstruction LLC of the cost of heat transfer by city heating networks and formation of debt to the municipal company in the amount of UAH 1.5 billion.

"Kyivteploenergo in an open letter addressed the NEURC with a proposal to conduct an audit of the intended use of the tariff funds of Euro-Reconstruction LLC, and also expresses a request to law enforcement officers to take response measures to prevent the inevitable consequences of the destruction of the district heating system in Kyiv," the text of the letter handed over to Interfax-Ukraine on Monday reads.

As follows from the document, Euro-Reconstruction uses municipal heating networks to supply its consumers with the produced thermal energy, but does not pay the municipal company for heat transportation services.

"From October 2020 to January 2023, Euro-Reconstruction received from Kyivteploenergo services for transportation of thermal energy in the amount of UAH 1.3 billion, without paying a single hryvnia under the terms of the agreement," the company noted.

Thus, according to the letter, Euro-Reconstruction for three years in a row receiving payment for heat supply from consumers, including the tariff for production, transportation and supply of thermal energy, uses the funds received for its own needs, not for their tariff purpose.

As of May 1, 2023, the total debt of Euro-Reconstruction to Kyivteploenergo for the services received for transportation of heat energy reached UAH 1.5 billion.

"It is worrying that such large-scale illegal abuses and misuse of tariff funds by a private heat supplier for a long time remain without attention and appropriate response from the regulator and law enforcement agencies," the company stressed.

According to the municipal company, at the beginning of 2020, the company filed a lawsuit to recover the debt in court. "However, the litigation of this, at first glance, simple economic dispute, each time is complicated by new circumstances that do not relate to the issue of payment for the services provided, or experienced judges make mistakes in decisions or make decisions without determining the scope of the services provided," the company explained. As a result, this leads to the annulment of previous decisions and retrials.

"In this context, the daring financial and legal abuses of a private heat supplier threaten to stop transportation of heat energy in the Euro-Reconstruction heat supply zone for 300,000 residents of Darnytsky and Dniprovsky districts of Kyiv," the company stated.

In addition, Euro-Reconstruction requires Kyivteploenergo to compensate for the cost of heat energy losses during transportation, although it should be carried out at the expense of funds paid for transportation of heat energy.

"Kyivteploenergo notes that payment for services for heat energy transportation is a financial source of maintenance of heating networks. Without proper maintenance, the condition of the networks is deteriorating, and heat losses are growing," the company added.