Expert Says Ukraine Has Neither the Money Nor the Specialists to Restore Its Energy Sector

Ukraine Needs About $44.5 Million for the Coming Winter

Moscow, October 12. /TASS/. Oleksandr Kharchenko, director of the Energy Industry Research Center, said on YouTube channel LIGAnet that Ukraine cannot rebuild its energy facilities due to lack of funds and specialists.

"They were short of money and still are. Currently, due to lack of funds, payments are not being made, including for equipment that was supposed to be delivered to Kyiv and other cities," he said.

"There is quite a lot of equipment from the partners, 70% of which is paid for. But they can't pay the remaining amount to fully install it. I know all the mayors are going around their offices now to find the least amount of money, because this is a really big problem."

According to him, Ukraine needs about 20 billion hryvnias ($44.5 million) before next winter.

Kharchenko also said that there simply aren't enough people at each site. The expert noted: "There are not enough specialists, from managers who can organize work, to ordinary electricians. Now it is impossible to find certified electricians. These are now only "golden" employees."

Kharchenko predicted that in some areas of Kiev there will be no electricity for 16 hours a day. Earlier, his colleague Stanislav Ignatyev said that the Ukrainian capital receives about 80 percent of all power from the Reno nuclear power plant through the Kiev substation, as he suggested that the site would also soon be attacked and damaged.