It took one year for a fully-fledged renewable energy sector to be formed in Ukraine

In the last year (from September 2010 to September 2011), a fully-fledged renewable energy sector has been formed in Ukraine, represented by the solar, wind, small hydropower engineering and biofuel sectors. According to a report prepared by the Association of Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, as part of preparations for the 3rd International Forum on the renewable power engineering and energy efficiency (REF-2011), which will be held on 17-18th of October, 2011 in Kyiv, new electricity generating facilities with a total capacity of more than 98 megawatts and heat generation of more than 42 megawatts have been put into operation in the last year. In particular, prior to October, 2010, there was no large energy generating facility in the segment of solar power engineering (this sector was represented by some low capacity home systems) in Ukraine. But in October 2010, in the city of Rodnikovoe (Simferopilskiy district, Autonomous Republic of Crimea), an Austrian company called Activ Solar, a sponsor of REF-2011's solar engineering segment, put into service the first Ukrainian solar power plant, which has a capacity of 2.5 megawatts. In the following 11 months, Activ Solar has put into service plants in Crimea with a total capacity of 65 megawatts. At the moment, the total capacity of the networked solar power plants of Activ Solar is 67.5 megawatts. In 2011, Activ Solar also plans to bring its industrial production capacity for polysilicon at its Zaporizhia semiconductor factory to 3,800 tonnes. Beside the projects of Activ Solar, several small roof photoelectric system projects have been realized in Ukraine, which have a total capacity of about 100 kilowatts. In 2011, the Ukrainian market of solar power engineering has also become a keen center of interest for foreign engineering companies from countries such as Israel, Spain, Germany and the United States. At the moment, there are several solar power plants of average power in the process of being built. In general, as of September 2011, the total capacity of power plants in Ukraine was approximately 67.6 megawatts. The launch of the first stage of a wind farm called "Novoazovskiy" in the town of Bezimyanniy in Novoazovskiy district, on the coast of the Sea of Asov (with a first stage capacity of 25 megawatts, and a total capacity of 107.5 megawatts) was a key event last year. In particular, 10 wind generators made by German company Fuhrländer AG were installed at the wind farm. A year before, in July 2010, an enterprise called Fuhrländer Windtechnology was created. Fuhrländer AG is one of the shareholders in this enterprise. The main purpose of this project is to organize the production of and delivery of wind generators in Ukraine. Also, a Greek company called Sa Prime Energy Construction SA (the sponsor of the REF-211 wind power engineering section) plans to implement a large-scale wind farm construction project, with a total capacity of 1,000 megawatts, in the Pervomaysk, Razdolnenskiy, Krasnoperekopsk and Leninskiy districts of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Eurocape New Energy Limited (the Principality of Monaco), which is part of an international concern called Eurocape Group, intends to build a wind farm with a capacity of more than 300 megawatts in the Priazovskiy district (Zaporizhia region). In 2011, "Eco-Optima" (a wind farm of about five megawatts in the western part of Ukraine) and Japanese Toshiba (first line - six megawatts in Crimea) have expressed the desire to build wind farms in Ukraine. As of September 2011, the total power of working wind farms is approximately 110 megawatts. Ukrainian company "Eco-Optima" has also announced plans to invest in the construction of several small hydropower stations. In general, more than 10 companies, including foreign companies, have expressed the desire to build small hydroelectric power plants in Ukraine. Over the last year, 14 new small hydropower stations, with a total power of three megawatts, have been put into service. According to data shared by the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, in general as of September 2011, there were 64 small hydropower plants being operated, with a total capacity of more than 104 megawatts. The largest operators of such stations are companies like "Novosvit" and "Energoinvest". In Ukraine, in the segment of hard biofuel production, within the period from September 2010 to September 2011, the capacities of hard biofuel production (fuel briquettes and pellets) increased by 270,000 tonnes per year- to 950,000 tonnes. The main contribution to this dynamic, according to research done by the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, have been made by oil-extracting plants that established lines for the granulation and briquetting of sunflower husks, with a total capacity of 250,000 tonnes per year. Also according to research done by the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, more than 30 large heat generation plants based on biomass, with a total capacity of 42 megawatts, including four biofuel power plants, with a capacity of three megawatts, were built in the last year. In Ukraine, as of September 2011, the total power of heat generation facilities based on biomass (woodworking waste, agrarian waste) is approximately 64 megawatts, and electricity generation approximately four megawatts. Within the last year there have been developments in the segment of motor biofuel. In particular, in April 2011, "Azov Oil Company" (a member of the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine), which has an oil-processing plant in the city of Mariupol (Donetsk region) has started the production of "Innovativ E-95", which consists of more than 40% biological components and differs from traditional types of petrol because of its improved ecological and operational qualities. The enterprise can produce more than 5,000 tonnes of biofuel per year. Commenting on the sector's development, the president of the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, Vitaliy Daviy, said, "Ukraine is in the spotlight for the majority of international players with regard to the renewable energy industry. Over the last year, all the projects that have been realized in Ukraine enabled it to become a fully-fledged member of the international alternative energy industry community. However, the results achieved represent only a small fraction of the potential that Ukraine has. In the upcoming year, Ukraine is expected to see a real boom in the sphere of the renewable energy industry. First and foremost, the level and the number of participants in the REF-2011 Forum is a good example of what is to come. It's good to state that projects in the sphere of alternative energy and new types of fuel, which have been for a long time only on paper, have started to come into reality." Detailed presentations from Ukrainian companies involved in the sphere of renewable energy, analyses of problems and industry prospects, and also a presentation of some new investment projects will take place during the working program of the 3rd International forum on renewable energy and energy efficiency (REF-2011), (held in the Intercontinental Hotel in Kyiv). The organizer of the forum is the Renewable Energy Center Fuel Alternative; co-organizer is the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine, with support from the European Small Hydropower Association (ESHA), the Solar Power Industry Association of Germany (BSW-Solar) and others. In 2010, among the participants of REF-2010 were more than 280 delegates from 30 countries. Official support for the forum is provided by the Verkhovna Rada Committee on the Issues of the Energy Industry, the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry of Ukraine, and the State Agency on Ecological investments of Ukraine. Partners of the REF-2011 Forum are KPMG (brand sponsor), Beiten Burkhardt (legal sponsor), Activ Solar (sponsor of the solar energy section), Prenecon (sponsor of the wind energy section), and "Dominion" legal group (sponsor of the energy efficiency section). Organizing committee: +38 044 498 90 56, [email protected], www.ref-ua.com Information: Created in September 2009, the association set as its goal the consolidation of the participants of the renewable energy industry market, to accelerate the formation and development of an alternative energy and clean technologies industry in Ukraine, the development of an effective and progressive legal basis, giving assistance in making Ukrainian production more stable on external markets, and the protection of market participants' interests. As of September 1, 2011, the association included 25 companies. For comments, interviews, and additional information please contact Iryna Nemova, secretary of the Association of the Alternative Types of Fuel and Energy Participants of Ukraine via cell phone: +38 067 810 88 22, or e-mail: [email protected]
Interfax-Ukraine – General News Partner of the REF-2011