Zelensky’s comments in his overnight message on Thursday followed a statement by Prime Minister Dennis Smihal that exports had begun earlier – at 100 megawatts – four months after Russia’s war in Ukraine. The president said the start of exports was “another important step in our move towards the European Union”. “Thanks to Ukrainian electricity, a significant part of the Russian gas used by European consumers can be replaced. Therefore, this is not just a matter of export profits for us, but a matter of security for the whole of Europe,” Zelensky said. “Let me remind you that our country ‘s connection to the EU’ s common energy system was already in place after the start of the war. Ukraine is doing things now that once seemed impossible.” Ukraine reached an agreement in mid-March to join the European Network of Transmission System Operators (ENTSO-E) as an observer after its network was linked to that of the EU. ENTSO-E said this week that preparations for the first exports from Ukraine, along with electricity from the former Soviet Moldova, had been completed starting June 30 – using an interconnection with Romania. Electricity trading on other interconnections between Ukraine and Slovakia and Ukraine and Hungary – as well as between Moldova and Romania – will follow soon, he said. The group said that the total commercial capacity will be initially set at 100 MW in the first phase. In an earlier statement, Prime Minister Shmyhal said Ukraine’s electricity export capacity to Europe could reach 2.5 gigawatts. (Report by Ronald Popeski · Edited by Stephen Coates)
