Kyiv Post: Shifting Ukraine's energy policy, the European way

Outnumbering the European Union average by more than two times by household energy consumption, Ukraine’s energy efficiency, or lack thereof, has become "the talk of the town", according to industry analysts who held a discussion on the issue at the Kyiv School of Economics on Aug. 11.

Local households seem to have an unquenchable appetite, devouring as much as 260 kilowatts per square meter a year, while the 28-nation bloc keeps the average between 90 and 120 kilowatts. Inversely, Ukrainians pay Hr 0.31 per unit of electricity, while the EU's figure stands at Hr 3.2 in Ukrainian currency terms.

The urgent need to bid farewell to Russian gas dependence, Ukraine’s main supplier, also heats up the debate around energy.

“Our primary concern now is to take complete stock of all energy resources in Ukraine. The only countries that do not have such assessments are Ukraine and Turkmenistan, where gas costs only $4 per thousand cubic meters,” says Svyatoslav Pavlyuk, expert for Energy Cities, a Europe-wide energy association of municipalities.
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