23.06.2026
On June 18, a forum of technical specialists of the Energy Club “From project to megawatt: engineering of new energy of Ukraine” was held in Kyiv. The event brought together experts from the energy sector to discuss practical solutions in the field of grids, distributed generation, RES, energy storage systems (BESS), cogeneration and improving the sustainability of the energy system.
Vadim Rassovsky, president of the Association of Hydropower of Ukraine, spoke among the key speakers. His report covered not only technical issues, but also strategic ones – from the model of energy infrastructure protection to the long-term architecture of Ukraine’s energy system.
“Energy today is a matter of protection, not just generation”
One of the main theses of the speech was the rethinking of the approach to energy design in the conditions of war. “Already now, it is necessary to include elements of protection of structures in the projects, so that even in such conditions the objects could function”, – stressed the president of the General Assembly “Association “Hydropower of Ukraine”.
He emphasized that Ukraine should work simultaneously in two time dimensions: short-term – passing the heating season and prompt recovery, and long-term – forming a new energy architecture.
Experience of South Korea: infrastructure under constant threat
Vadym Rassovsky cited South Korea as an example of a systemic approach to infrastructure security: “The capital is 30 kilometers from the border, and this is a distance that is not safe from the point of view of modern weapons. But the country has a strategy where the key word is defense.”
He emphasized that in similar countries, critical substations and power nodes are designed taking into account damage scenarios and have a multi-level protection system.
Three levels of protection and new engineering logic
The speaker noted that modern energy infrastructure should take into account three categories of facility protection, especially key substations and power nodes.
Separately, the president of the General Assembly “Hydroenergy Association of Ukraine” emphasized that Ukraine has already accumulated enough experience to move from response to system design of protected energy: “Protection is a very important issue. And even what is being done now must be evaluated taking into account the new technical capabilities of the means of destruction.”
The Gap Between Design and Construction: A Systemic Industry Problem
A separate block of speech was devoted to the problem of organizing energy projects.
“Design and build – this should not become the rule. This is an exception to the rules, because these are risks,” said Vadym Rassovsky.
According to the speaker, the lack of a clear separation between the stages of design, contracting and implementation creates critical risks: the equipment may be destroyed even before it is put into operation or remain outside the contractual basis.
“It is unclear: the equipment has not yet been delivered, but it has already been partially or completely destroyed, and the contract will be signed later,” he noted.
The President of the General Assembly “Hydroenergy Association of Ukraine” called for minimizing this gap through coordination between the state, regulators, generation and operators of distribution systems.
Logistics and global shortage of equipment
Vadym Rassovskyi drew attention to another critical factor – long production cycles of energy equipment: “Orders at manufacturing plants are years in advance. And we need to recover in conditions where the bill goes on for months.”
He emphasized the necessity of forming emergency stocks of equipment, especially critical components of substations: “There is a range that does not cost a lot of money, but without it the object can stand for months.”
Recovery vs protection: two different tasks
The expert clearly distinguished the approaches to infrastructure restoration and protection: “Recovery is not always possible. In most cases, the issue of protection comes to the fore.”
He noted that even existing technical solutions are gradually losing relevance due to the development of means of defeat.
Distributed generation: between concept and reality
Separately, Vadym Rassovsky focused on the topic of distributed generation, microgrids and BESS: “There is a good concept, as it should be, and there are realities, as they are today.”
According to him, before completely transitioning to complex intelligent systems, the energy industry must solve basic problems – losses in networks, commercial accounting, stability of the work of the Ukrainian National Energy Agency.
He also drew attention to the need for practical verification of power system operating modes, in particular isolated and isolated load modes.
Social and environmental risks of new energy
Separately, the president of the General Assembly “Association “Hydropower of Ukraine” raised the topic of preparatory ETAshalf of energy projects: “Social and environmental components must be worked out before the feasibility study.”
He emphasized that any facility is not only a technical solution, but also an interaction with communities, land, networks and local infrastructure.
Vadym Rassovsky also drew attention to long-term environmental challenges:
Hydropower as a long-term basis of the system
A significant part of the speech was devoted to hydropower and pumped storage plants. “Hydropower is not a short cycle. It is a decade of operation and stability of the energy system,” the experienced energy engineer emphasized.
He noted that it is the PSPP that is one of the key solutions for balancing the system in the context of the development of renewable energy and unstable generation.
The speaker also recalled the international trend, confirmed at energy forums, regarding the active development of pumped storage capacities.
Strategic projects of Ukraine
Among the strategic directions, Vadym Rassovsky mentioned:
“We need to clearly understand what we want to do: restoration is one task, development and new facilities are another,” he summarized.
In conclusion, Vadym Rassovsky emphasized that Ukraine’s energy sector must change not only technologically, but also conceptually – from a reactive model to a system where protection, planning, reserves and long-term engineering become basic principles.
His speech actually outlined three key pillars of the future energy sector:
