17.09.2025
Over 63,000 attacks on energy infrastructure have occurred since the full-scale invasion, with more than 700 of them purposefully targeting critical facilities. As of the end of 2024, Ukraine has lost about 10 GW of its generating capacity.
These are figures that need no comment. They clearly explain why decentralized energy, renewable sources, and local hubs have ceased to be an innovation. They have become a matter of survival.
It is in these conditions that communities and businesses are transforming into the driving force behind the energy system’s transformation. Ukrainian cities, villages, industrial enterprises, farmers, and developers are not waiting for the approval of state strategies; they are creating new energy centers on the ground. The war has changed priorities: energy independence has become a mission.
In the first half of 2025 alone, 591 MW of new generation capacity was commissioned in the regions of Ukraine. Among the new facilities are 84 MW of wind power plants (WPPs) and 101.4 MW of industrial-scale solar power plants (SPPs). An additional 84 MW of SPPs were installed in private households.
Nearly one in five companies in Ukraine (about 20%) is already investing in renewable energy sources (RES). For comparison, in 2023, this figure was only 6%. This represents a threefold increase in just two years.
An even larger number of enterprises, about 40%, state they plan to invest in their own energy independence in the near future. They show the greatest interest in solar (51%) and wind energy (25%). Against the backdrop of a generation deficit, these are not just business initiatives—they are a contribution to national resilience.
Energy communities could become a new vector for development. This is a format where citizens, local self-government bodies, and small and medium-sized businesses unite to generate power for their own consumption and to sell the surplus.
In the European Union, the creation and operation of energy communities are regulated by a relevant legal framework, particularly EU Directives 2018/2001 on the promotion of the use of RES and 2019/944 on common rules for the internal market for electricity.
Ukraine is just beginning to form the regulatory field for such associations. However, there are already examples of pilot energy community projects supported by USAID, GIZ, and other donors. For instance, in the Vinnytsia region, a community project was implemented where farmers installed SPPs for irrigation, while in Lutsk, homeowners’ associations are implementing rooftop panels and batteries for energy autonomy.
It should be understood that energy communities are not just about generation but a new model of energy democracy. Instead of dependence on a single centralized system, a flexible, resilient network of local hubs is being formed.
One of the most notable development trends has been the “generation for self-consumption” model. Businesses are increasingly building SPPs to cover their own needs and minimize dependence on the market.
Most of these projects are implemented without state support. At the same time, installing an SPP can reduce a business’s energy costs by 20-40% annually. When combined with batteries, it becomes a self-sufficient and flexible model.
A separate trend is the integration of various sources (SPPs, energy storage systems, gas piston generators) into a single system that balances the load in real-time.
According to various estimates, WPP projects with a total capacity of over 4 GW are currently in the implementation phase.
For example, OKKO is already building a wind farm in Volyn (150 MW), DTEK has completed the second phase of the Tilihulska WPP (400 MW), and the launch of the Poltavska WPP (650 MW) is being prepared.
However, large-scale growth is hampered by a number of systemic problems:
Such problems hinder investment even in relatively safe regions, such as Zakarpattia.
Meanwhile, according to data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 90% of the attacks in 2024 were carried out by drones, making the decentralization of generation even more urgent.
A statement by the European Business Association, addressed to the Ministry of Energy, clearly defines the steps the government must take now:
This is a constructive agenda, aimed not at criticism, but at creating the conditions to scale solutions that are already working at the community and business levels.
Today, communities are not waiting for orders from the central government but are taking the lead in restoring the energy sector. Businesses at all levels are investing resources, developing their own solutions, and partnering with donors and local authorities.
Ukraine already has its first energy community projects, industrial generation for self-consumption, dozens of local projects for SPPs, WPPs, and storage systems; ready domestic production of turbines and hybrid inverters that is gradually replacing imports, and much more.
But a common strategy is needed to unite these efforts into a national framework. We have a unique chance to create a modern, decentralized, and flexible energy system that will not only survive the war but will become an example for other nations.
Every community with an SPP, every company with an energy storage system, every energy community—they are not just projects. They are another step towards Ukraine’s energy stability.
About the Author
Andrii Petrovych Kalinov, Technical Director of NVP ENERGO-PLUS, Professor, PhD in Engineering.
Since 2002, he has been a lecturer at the Kremenchuk Mykhailo Ostrohradskyi National University, where he holds the position of Professor at the Department of Automatic Control Systems and Electric Drives. He is the author of hundreds of scientific publications and a recipient of several state awards, including the Prize of the President of Ukraine for Young Scientists. His research focuses on energy efficiency, diagnostics of electric drives, and the implementation of innovations in industrial automation. As part of the ENERGO-PLUS team, he has implemented dozens of engineering projects that combine a scientific approach with practical solutions for the energy sector. He actively develops partnerships with technical universities, participates in technology transfer, and promotes a culture of R&D in production processes.
