Ukrainian-American Environmental Association (UAEA)
Washington, D.C., Monday, October 25, 2010

Contents:

I.) ENERGY EFFICIENCY
- EU-Funded Project Supports Energy Efficiency in Cherkassy's Historical Buildings
- €175 million EBRD Loan Boosts Energy Efficiency of Electrical Transmission Lines, Substations and Infrastructure in Southern Ukraine
- Lviv Hosts Conference on Energy Efficiency
- IFC Partners with Switzerland to Improve Residential Energy Efficiency in Ukraine
- USAID/Ukraine Promotes Energy Efficiency Month at National Municipal Forum
- How Energy Subsidies Have Sapped Ukraine’s Efficiency

II.) RENEWABLE ENERGY
- Manager of Sharp Says 7% Target for 2020 Photovoltaic Use Is Ambitious
- Solar Power Stations Planned in Crimea
- Ukrainian Companies Sponsor a Day of Alternative Energy Opportunities

III.) FOSSIL FUELS
- Naftogaz of Ukraine to Reduce Gas and Oil Production in 2010
- What’s Being Done to Burn Cleaner Car Fuel, Improve Air That Everyone Breathes

IV.) NUCLEAR POWER
- Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia Sign Nuclear Fuel Transit Deal
- Disasters Waiting To Happen
- Yanukovych Says Ukraine to Build Uranium Refinement Plant in Kirovohrad Region
- Kirovograd Doesn't Want to Be a Uranium-Mining City

V.) ENERGY - GENERAL
- The Battle for Ukraine's Energy Allegiance

VI.) CLIMATE CHANGE
- No More Harsh Winters
- Tymoshenko Says Cabinet's Improper Use of Proceeds from Sale of Greenhouse Emissions Quotas Does Not Amount to Wrongdoing
- European Commission Stings Ukraine on CO2
- Krasnodoncoal Has Generated €598 thsd Within the Kyoto Protocol Framework

VII.) UPCOMING EVENTS
- Specialized Trade Fair "Energy Efficiency 2010"
- International Conference “Twenty-Five Years after Chornobyl Accident - Safety for the Future”

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I.) ENERGY EFFICIENCY

EU-Funded Project Supports Energy Efficiency in Cherkassy's Historical Buildings:
Tendersinfo News, October 19, 2010
http://spineciudad.net/about-spine
The sustainable development of historic towns has become a major imperative. Buildings account for 40% of the energy demand in the EU, and even more in the ENPI countries. Promoting energy efficiency in buildings is essential to reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions. The overall objective of the EU-funded SPINE partnership is to improve planning and integration of energy efficiency and renewable energy source technologies into historic buildings and city centers, while promoting the development of a local policy, regulatory framework and expertise. The participants in the SPINE project include the Cherkasy Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The agenda for a recent planning meeting for the Cherkasy program can be found at: http://spineciudad.net/1st-spine-visibility-action-in-cherkasy.

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€175 million EBRD Loan Boosts Energy Efficiency of Electrical Transmission Lines, Substations and Infrastructure in Southern Ukraine:
European Bank for Reconstruction & Development, by Anton Usov, October 19, 2010
http://www.ebrd.com/pages/news/press/2010/101019g.shtml
and
Oil & Gas Eurasia, October 19, 2010
http://www.oilandgaseurasia.com/news/p/0/news/9210
The EBRD is extending a 15-year sovereign loan of up to €175 million to the Ukrainian National Power Company Ukrenergo to help improve the efficiency, quality and reliability of electricity generation and transmission in southern Ukraine and the Crimea. The loan, matched by a similar-sized loan from the European Investment Bank, will finance the construction of a 190-kilometer 750 kV transmission line between a nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia and a new substation in the town of Kakhovka. The funding will support the construction of a 750 kV substation at Kakhovka and two 330kV line diversions in the Kherson region of Ukraine. It will also facilitate the rehabilitation of two 330 kV transmission lines in the Zaporizhzhia region and of a 330kV substation in Nova Kakhovka. The project is of primary importance for Ukraine’s electricity system as it will help reduce energy transmission losses and its dependence on imported fuels.

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Lviv Hosts Conference on Energy Efficiency:
Ukrainian Energy Efficiency Program, October 18, 2010
http://www.ukeep.org/en/news/69-lviv-conference-summary
UKEEP recently held a half-day conference in Lviv for more than 60 participants from companies in the region to discuss the importance of energy efficiency both in the private and municipal companies in the Lviv region. This was followed by several presentations from UKEEP experts about the current energy situation in Ukraine and examples of successful energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Many company representatives took the chance to discuss their project ideas with UKEEP experts after the seminar. A detailed slide-show "How can companies in the Lviv area benefit from energy savings with UKEEP, Why Energy Efficiency?" can be found at: http://www.ukeep.org/images/dl/UKEEP_Lviv_101013_AL_eng.pdf

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IFC Partners with Switzerland to Improve Residential Energy Efficiency in Ukraine:
International Finance Corporation, October 14, 2010
http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/media.nsf/content/SelectedPressRelease?OpenDocument&UNID=7A41687466701658852577BC00508746
The IFC, in partnership with the Swiss State Secretariat of Economic Affairs, has launched a new advisory project that will promote energy-efficient modernization of residential buildings in Ukraine and reduce energy waste and greenhouse-gas emissions. As the second-largest end-user of energy in Ukraine after manufacturing, the residential housing sector has the greatest potential for energy savings and greenhouse gas emissions reduction in the region. Investments in energy-saving measures in the country’s residential market could reduce gas consumption by about 30 percent and result in energy savings of up to 40 percent. IFC’s Residential Energy Efficiency Advisory Project in Ukraine will be implemented over three years.

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USAID/Ukraine Promotes Energy Efficiency Month at National Municipal Forum:
U.S. Agency for International Development, by Erin Concors, September 16, 2010
http://ukraine.usaid.gov/news_full.shtml?p=561
Since February 2009, the USAID Municipal Heating Reform Project has initiated systematic changes in Ukraine’s heating sector at the national and municipal level, and for end users. The project works closely with the Government of Ukraine and 36 municipalities across the country. As one example, the city of Kramatorsk and USAID will co-finance and modernize the municipal heating system in one of the city districts. This modernization will make about 100 residential and public buildings warmer and more comfortable for the district’s 40,000 residents – while at the same time, saving up to 15 percent of its energy consumption. Last year, USAID launched a “Save Heat – Save Ukraine” information campaign on energy efficiency. Through public service announcements, billboards and media, the campaign encourages citizens to take an active personal role in energy conservation. It includes programs for schoolchildren in how to conserve heat and make their schools and homes more energy efficient. The campaign also promotes forming condominium owner associations as a way for citizens to better manage their utility costs.

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How Energy Subsidies Have Sapped Ukraine’s Efficiency:
Kyiv Post, by Olga Gnativ, August 5, 2010
http://www.kyivpost.com/news/business/bus_focus/detail/77094
Research shows that Ukraine uses three times more energy to produce each unit of gross domestic product than an average European Union country. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development estimates that about $10 billion needs to be invested by 2015 and another $10 billion by 2030 to keep the economy competitive. From 2006 to 2008, the EBRD committed nearly $770 million to sustainable energy projects in Ukraine. In the same period, the International Finance Corporation, the investment arm of the World Bank, spent $250 million on various projects. But the financial crisis that hit in 2008 put the brakes on the promising progress. As the country creeps out of crisis, investments in modernization could resume. However, despite more than 200 pieces of legislation on energy consumption, there is a lack of rules and mechanisms for regulating and introducing energy-saving measures.

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II.) RENEWABLE ENERGY

Manager of Sharp Says 7% Target for 2020 Photovoltaic Use Is Ambitious:
Ukrainian Journal, October 20, 2010
http://www.ukrainianjournal.com/index.php?w=article&id=11348
The target of 7 percent for photovoltaics in electricity generation in Ukraine by 2020 would be ambitious, says Barbara Rudek, Manager Strategy & Governmental Policy Affairs at Sharp Energy Solution Europe. She noted that the European Parliament in December 2008 passed a directive under which the 27 European counties should increase the share of renewable energy sources in electricity generation to 20 percent by 2020. The European PV industry said its share could be no more than 12 perent.

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Solar Power Stations Planned in Crimea:
The Day, September 7, 2010
http://www.day.kiev.ua/308358
The Active Solar Company plans to launch two solar power stations with capacities of 1 MW and 1.5 MW in Crimea. As the CEO of five subsidiaries of Active Solar Serhii Kolobov explained, they plan to launch three more solar power stations in the future. Each power station would be registered as a separate company, as Crimea Solar 1 and Crimea Solar 2, respectively (both in Simferopol raion). Applications for the issuance of licenses for these companies to the National Commission for Energy Regulation have already been filed. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, by virtue of its Decree No. 682 dated July 30, exempted the import of two solar power plants and their components to Ukraine from customs duties and VAT. According to the text of the resolution, the cost of the two power plants is 4.658 million euros; their cables will cost 100,696 euros.

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Ukrainian Companies Sponsor a Day of Alternative Energy Opportunities:
The Day, by Natalia Bilousova, September 2, 2010
http://www.day.kiev.ua/307883
Near Vyshhorod, on the bank of the Desna River, a unique “Energy Camp” emerged at which all the energy needs of its residents (heating water, operating computers, TV-sets, etc.) were provided by the devices that produce energy from renewable sources, including sunlight. This is how the organizers of the Ukrainian Network of Energy Innovation “Greencubator” decided to demonstrate the viability of renewable energy. The energy heart of the camp was a mobile autonomous solar power station with a design capacity of 2.4 kW. Devices heating the camp’s water were also supplied by the sun’s energy. In addition, five companies participated in a contest of young businesses using renewable energy devices. They presented technologies on manufacturing micro converters (converting energy of the sun to the current of 220 W), producing combustible powders, producing extra-volume capacitors (accumulating power), LED-illumination (powerful illumination with small devices of 100 W), and so on. All of these technologies were developed in Ukraine. About a hundred people came to see the camp, including NGO leaders, businesspeople, bankers, journalists, inventors, students, and volunteers.

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III.) FOSSIL FUELS

Naftogaz of Ukraine to Reduce Gas and Oil Production in 2010:
RosBusinessConssulting, September 24, 2010
http://www.rbcnews.com/free/20100924183820.shtml
Naftogaz of Ukraine is expected to reduce gas production by 4.8 percent to 18.4bn cubic meters of natural gas, and oil production - by 9.4 percent to 3.3m tons in 2010 compared to 2009. The main reason for reducing gas production is the depletion of gas deposits. The majority of them have been under development for 40 or 50 years. Naftogaz of Ukraine cut gas production 5.6 percent to 12.262bn in the first eight months of 2010 compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Oil and gas condensate production dropped 11.6 percent to 2.192m tons.

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What’s Being Done to Burn Cleaner Car Fuel, Improve Air That Everyone Breathes:
Kyiv Post, by Olga Gnativ, August 5, 2010
http://www.kyivpost.com/news/business/bus_focus/detail/77095
Ukraine has been gradually moving toward cleaner fuels since 2000, when it declared its plan to follow European emissions standards. In 2005, the country signed a roadmap with the European Union aimed at improving fuel quality and reducing harmful emissions according to the “Euro” scale. However, the industry-wide move to Euro-4 standard fuel, originally set for Jan. 1, 2011 by the government, could be postponed until 2013, as many fuel producers say they are not ready and need more investment in production. Euro-4 fuels, which became standard in Europe in 2005, emit less than half the amount of toxic carbon monoxide as Euro-2 fuels, the current standard in Ukraine. As the deadline approaches, industry experts say only two fuel processing plants in the country are prepared for Euro-4 standard: TNK-BP’s plant in Lysychansk, which has a 23 percent market share, and Lukoil’s plant in Odessa, which controls 8 percent of the market.

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IV.) NUCLEAR POWER

Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia Sign Nuclear Fuel Transit Deal:
UNIAN, October 22, 2010
http://www.unian.net/eng/news/news-402230.html
Russia, Ukraine and Slovakia have signed in Bratislava an intergovernmental agreement on transit of nuclear materials via Ukraine. The agreement creates the international legal framework for nuclear fuel transportation by the Russian company TVEL to operating and planned power units of Slovak nuclear power plants. Slovakia currently has six Soviet-designed light-water reactors.

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Disasters Waiting To Happen:
Kyiv Post, by Mark Rachkevych, October 22, 2010
http://www.kyivpost.com/news/nation/detail/87151
Ukraine is home to dozens of potentially large ecological disasters. Though Ukraine’s surface area made up 3 percent of the total area of the former Soviet Union, it possessed 25 percent of its industrial potential and, therefore, a quarter of its industrial pollution. For example, the Chornobyl zone still poses a threat and contains several potential radiological hot spots. Not officially closed until 2000, Chornobyl still leaks to this day. Until a confinement structure is built, it is at risk of leaking radioactive fuel. If a big leak breaks out, the entire region, including Kyiv, could be contaminated. In addition, the Prydniprovsky Chemical Plant in Dniprodzerzhynsk on the Dnipro River, which processed enriched uranium from 1949 to 1991, has accumulated seven tailing ponds containing industrial and radioactive waste in an area of 2.43 million square meters, 250,000 square meters of which has uranium waste. All seven of the tailing ponds are considered to be in unsatisfactory condition. The largest tailing pond along Ukraine’s section of the Dnipro Basin is a 73-hectare pond containing 12 million cubic meters of non-radioactive and radioactive waste, which is located just one kilometer from the right bank of the Dnipro Reservoir.

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Yanukovych Says Ukraine to Build Uranium Refinement Plant in Kirovohrad Region:
Interfax News Agency, October 22, 2010
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=574&topicId=100007539&docId=l:1288038168&start=32
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has announced plans to build a plant for uranium refinement in the Kirovohrad Region. During his visit to the region, Yanukovych said that the Radii R&D Center would play an essential role in Ukraine's nuclear sector. He said that around 55% of electricity in Ukraine is currently produced by nuclear reactors but that the construction of several new nuclear reactors should raise this figure to 60%.

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Kirovograd Doesn't Want to Be a Uranium-Mining City:
Green Party, September 27, 2010
http://greenparty.ua/en/news/news_23284.html
Kirovograd is the only city in the world where uranium mines are situated directly near the residential areas. And the hazardous industrial waste is stored in the so-called cemetery of the radioactive waste in Petrovsky district. So it is not a surprise that the region - among the first in incidence of cancer, according to Tetiana Kondratyuk, Chair of the Green Party of Ukraine. The Green Party of Ukraine supports the decision of Kirovohrad municipal council on the status of the city area as an area of environmental emergency.

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V.) ENERGY - GENERAL

The Battle for Ukraine's Energy Allegiance:
FRIDE, by Natalia Shapovalova, September 23, 2010
http://www.fride.org/publication/810/the-battle-for-ukraine's-energy-allegiance
As the main route of Russian gas into Europe, Ukraine is vital to European and Russian energy security. While the EU seeks to secure gas supplies by integrating its eastern neighbor in its energy market, Russia is increasingly seeking to prevent EU-led reforms in Ukraine in order to secure stable gas export incomes and continue exerting power over its ‘sphere of privileged interest’. As the country is loosing its transit role and the economy is increasingly inefficient, Ukraine is presented with an ever-starker choice between the energy security guarantees of the EU and Russia.

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VI.) CLIMATE CHANGE

No More Harsh Winters:
Kyiv Weekly, October 18, 2010
http://kyivweekly.com.ua/accent/news/2010/10/18/174801.html
Meteorologists believe that winters in Ukraine will become milder, according to Deputy Director of the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Center Anatoliy Prokopenko. He noted that while winters in Ukraine will get warmer “summers will essentially remain as they are now”. “Spring will start a bit earlier than in the past and the beginning of autumn will also be slightly delayed. He named natural cyclical changes of in climate and the anthropogenic influence, i.e. the aggregate of factors of the environment conditioned by accidental or premeditated human activity among the causes of changes in average temperatures.

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Tymoshenko Says Cabinet's Improper Use of Proceeds from Sale of Greenhouse Emissions Quotas Does Not Amount to Wrongdoing:
Ukrainian News Agency, October 16, 2010
http://un.ua/eng/article/291496.html
Yulia Tymoshenko, the leader of the All-Ukrainian Union "Batkivschyna" party, says that the 2009 improper use by the Cabinet of Ministers of proceeds from sale of quotas on greenhouse gas emissions does not amount to wrongdoing. The Trout Cacheris PLLC law firm in Washington, D.C., has uncovered misapplication by the Cabinet of Ministers of EUR 200 million obtained through the sale of carbon credits under the Kyoto Protocol in 2009. The firm audited the Tymoshenko-led government’s activities for a period from 2008 and to the first quarter of 2010. In particular, the auditors have revealed that of the EUR 320 million Ukraine received in 2009 from sale of quotas on greenhouse gas emissions EUR, 200 million were transferred to the Pension Fund despite the Kyoto Protocol orders use of these proceeds for realization of environment protection projects only.

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European Commission Stings Ukraine on CO2:
United Press International, September 25, 2010
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2010/09/25/European-Commission-stings-Ukraine-on-CO2/UPI-54541285449696
The European Commission says it won't allocate funds to Ukraine for its national environmental strategy unless it opens up the process to more outside input. The announcement came after Bankwatch, an umbrella group of environmental NGOs, called the drafting of Ukraine's environmental strategy "deceptive" and could actually lead to an increase in carbon dioxide emissions. Ukraine has pledged to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent below 1990 levels within the next 10 years.

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Krasnodoncoal Has Generated €598 Thousand Within the Kyoto Protocol Framework:
Eco-Ukraine, August 3, 2010
http://www.eco-ukraine.org.ua
Krasnodoncoal OJSC has generated €598 thousand as proceeds from the sale of carbon credits within the framework of the first phase of the Mine Methane Utilization Project developed using the Kyoto Protocol mechanisms. Its goals include improvement of miners' safety and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The proceeds will be used to develop degassing systems of coal mining subdivisions and raise the level of industrial safety. The proceeds have been transferred by the emissions buyer - ING Bank (the Netherlands) upon verification of the emissions reduction achieved in 2006-2008. Currently, verification has commenced for emissions as of 2009 and the first six months of 2010. The Joint Implementation Project was started in 2006 at Suhodol'skoe-Vostochnoe mine. This is the first mine methane utilization project of Krasnodoncoal using the flexible Kyoto Protocol mechanisms. Krasnodoncoal's investments in this project have exceeded $1 million. The total volume of reduced greenhouse gas emissions under the project will comprise around 300 thousand units of CO2 by the end of 2012.

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VII.) UPCOMING EVENTS

Specialized Trade Fair "Energy Efficiency 2010"
November 9-12, 2010
Kyiv, Ukraine
http://www.mfa.gov.ua/usa/en/announce/detail/3349.htm
The main purpose of the specialized trade fair “Energy Efficiency’2010” is the demonstration of the latest samples of energy efficient equipment and innovative engineering decisions regarding production and technical processes improvement, promotion of advantages of alternative energy sources use, contribution to ramp up of local resources consumption and energy efficient equipment production and also extension of international cooperation and partnership. Organized by the National Agency of Ukraine on Ensuring of Efficient Use of Energy Resources Management and the International Exhibition Centre, Ltd., the fair will also feature renewable energy technologies such as solar, wind, and hydropower.

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International Conference “Twenty-Five Years after Chornobyl Accident - Safety for the Future”
Kyiv, April 20-22, 2011
International Conference
http://www.un.org.ua/en/information-centre/news/1221
April 26, 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of the Chornobyl accident. In many countries, nuclear technology is regarded as one of the most effective solutions to meet the growing demand for energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate climate change and counterbalance fluctuations in prices for fossil energy sources. At the same time one can not forget the consequences of the Chornobyl accident. Consequently, the main purpose of the conference is to use the lessons of Chornobyl to ensure the safety of nuclear power and other dangerous technologies, and protecting people and the environment from emergencies catastrophic events.

Abstracts - file Microsoft Word (up to two A4 pages of text, Times New Roman font size 12, listed in the top right corner of one of the directions of the Conference) and a letter stating intention to participate in the Conference should be sent to the Secretariat of the Organizing Committee no later than October 25, 2010, to:
Conference Secretariat
13, General Naumov Street
Kyiv -164, 03164
Tel. +380 044 40915 86,
tel/fax: +380 044 452 06 78
e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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** UKRAINIAN-AMERICAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSOCIATION

The Ukrainian-American Environmental Association is a private, non-governmental, non-profit organization founded in 2004 and chartered in both the United States and Ukraine. It is a network of 900+ Ukrainian and American NGOs, academic researchers, businesses, government officials, and individual citizens founded to facilitate the exchange of information on a broad array of environmental issues including, but not limited to, energy efficiency, renewable energy, fossil fuels, nuclear power, and climate change.

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For those living in the Washington DC area, UAEA also publishes the free-of-charge weekly “Upcoming Washington DC-Area Ukrainian Events” bulletin. It is available upon request.