Ukraine Looks Attractive for Renewable Energy Investment

Ukraine appeared on the latest Ernst & Young Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Indices, proving to be an attractive emerging market for renewable energy. The November issue of the respectable index lists solar, wind, and hydropower industries as top renewable energy sectors in Ukraine.

The new report by Ernst & Young describes Ukrainian renewable resource potential as “impressive” and lists tax incentives available to green energy companies: corporate tax exemption on sales for 10 years starting January 1, 2011, VAT exemptions on certain imports, and a 75% reduction of land tax on the purchase of land for green energy projects.

The leading source of renewable energy in Ukraine is hydropower, reports Ernst & Young. Installed capacity is 150 MW. The potential of the hydropower industry in Ukraine is estimated at 2.3 GW. The country has 22,400 rivers that allow for small hydro plants to be built across the country.

According to Ernst & Young, Ukraine also has strong solar potential. The November report lists the country as the one that offers favorable tax climate – the feed-in tariff in the country is over € 0.40/kWh. Moreover, it is claimed that Ukraine hosts the largest photovoltaic power plant in Central and Eastern Europe. The capacity of the facility is 80 MW.

Analysts at the British audit company note that Ukraine’s highest renewables potential lies within its offshore wind industry – the country ranked 27 in the respective category. The wind powered energy production in Ukraine has installed capacity of 87MW (as of Dec. 2010) and projected capacity estimated at 19-24 GW.

Suffice it to say that Ukraine’s biomass industry constitutes over two-thirds of the country’s potential on the market of renewables. Currently, under 0.5 percent of energy is produced from biomass but the estimated potential is ten times larger.

Ernst & Young concludes that there are strong signs that Ukraine is committed to meeting the goal of generating 19% of energy from renewable energy sources by 2030 (according to the Government’s 2006 strategy). The national project Natural Energy, launched in 2010, sets an objective to increase the share of Ukraine’s renewable energy production on the state energy market up to 30 percent by 2015.

[mappress]

Source: prnewswire, November 29, 2011