Volodymyr Smolii: "Distributed Generation is Becoming the Foundation of Ukraine's New Energy Resilience"

06.10.2025

Volodymyr Smolii

On September 25th in Kyiv, during the Energy Club forum “Resilience and Transformation: Balancing Ukraine’s Energy System in a New Reality,” Volodymyr Smolii, Executive Director of Prykarpatenergotrade LLC, shared the company’s practical experience in implementing local solutions for the energy autonomy of businesses and communities.

His speech during the first panel, “Resilience Under Attack: Operational Challenges and Realities of the Ukrainian Energy System,” was dedicated to the changes that have occurred in the energy market since the start of the full-scale war and the new approaches to ensuring the reliability of electricity supply.

From a “Box” to a Puzzle: How the War Changed the Energy System

According to Volodymyr Smolii, until recently, Ukraine’s energy system was perceived by consumers and communities as a closed and stable “box” whose operation required no attention. However, the war, destruction, and blackouts have prompted a reassessment.

“We woke up in a different reality. This game is no longer played by two—producers and the regulator—but by at least three or four. Communities, businesses, and even households have actively joined the process,” he emphasized.

Now, the energy system more closely resembles a complex puzzle with numerous local solutions that are forming a new architecture of resilience.

Households, Communities, Business: New Players in the Energy Market

The Executive Director of Prykarpatenergotrade LLC recalled that back in 2014, while serving as the deputy mayor of Dolyna, he implemented energy efficiency projects, including the insulation of residential buildings. Similar initiatives at the time were met with skepticism until rising tariffs forced citizens to act.

A similar situation, in his opinion, is happening today with the installation of solar power plants. This process is developing particularly dynamically in the Ivano-Frankivsk region:

• Since 2022, the number of hybrid home solar power plants with energy storage has sharply increased.
• Communities are increasingly considering mini-SPPs and cogeneration units as the basis for future “mini-energy islands.”
• Businesses operating without subsidized tariffs are investing in their own power sources to maintain operational continuity.

“In effect, a system is being formed in which every participant—from the household to the community—is involved in ensuring resilience,” stressed Volodymyr Smolii.

Supplier-Consumer Relations: A Shift to Partnership

Another significant change has been the reshaping of the relationship between the seller and the consumer.

“It’s no longer just a matter of buying a few kopecks cheaper. It’s about a comprehensive set of services: dispatching of distributed generation, storage management, energy efficiency at the level of households, businesses, communities, and the region,” noted the Executive Director of Prykarpatenergotrade LLC.

Such relationships, he said, are becoming partnerships based on mutually beneficial solutions.

Barriers to the Development of Distributed Generation

Despite the positive trends, Volodymyr Smolii pointed out a number of serious problems:

• Regulatory barriers: Policy is not keeping up with reality. For example, even to account for energy from home SPPs, it is sometimes necessary to install several meters.
• Subsidized tariff for the population: It distorts the market and creates the illusion of cheap electricity, which is actually subsidized by taxpayers.
• Lack of a requirement for mandatory storage when installing SPPs: This leads to “solar stations with light bulbs” that only create an imbalance in the system.
• Technical barriers: The absence of sufficiently effective systems for forecasting and managing flows.

Prykarpatenergotrade’s Pilot Projects

The company is already implementing practical solutions:

• Building its own network of distributed generation based on cogeneration units.
• Projects for energy storage in households to balance peak loads.
• Creating a regional ecosystem of distributed generation that will unite the interests of businesses, households, communities, and the supplier.

“For us, participating in such events is an opportunity not only to exchange experiences but also to contribute to the formation of a new model of energy resilience for Ukraine. Next time, I hope, we will be able to present comprehensive results that will serve as an example for other regions,” Volodymyr Smolii concluded his speech at the Energy Club forum.