The European Union plans to allocate EUR 1.5 billion in monthly funding to Ukraine in 2023, and in turn, the country will independently determine how much it needs to spend on restoring the energy infrastructure damaged by Russian military aggression, European Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson said.
"We have proposed a funding scheme for next year for Ukraine and they will prioritize their financial needs to restore energy infrastructure. But in general, this will give Ukraine a stable flow of support: EUR1.5 billion every month," she said in an interview with Radio Liberty.
According to her, restoring the energy infrastructure is a clear priority for Ukraine, "because it will be very difficult to survive without heat, without electricity."
In addition, without waiting for the beginning of the direct financing process, the EU, together with the Energy Community, created the Energy Support Fund of Ukraine, through which all interested countries of the world can support efforts to find and supply Kyiv with the necessary energy equipment.
"In many cases, it's not a question of funding, but a question of very specific machinery and equipment needs. The energy community and utilities are reaching out to companies that may have this equipment in stock, and we've already received several positive responses. The first transformers are on their way to being replaced by which Russian drones or missiles were destroyed," the European Commissioner stressed.
Simson clarified that a number of international companies have confirmed the temporary priority of delivering energy equipment in favor of Ukraine.