02.02.2026
On January 29, 2026, the Energy Freedom talk show hosted a discussion titled: “Institutional Independence of the NEURC in 2026: Euro-Integration Test, Legislative Changes, and Investor Confidence.”
The meeting was a response from the market to legislative initiatives (specifically Draft Laws No. 14282 and No. 14282-1) that propose changes to the Regulator’s operations. Representatives of the European Commission, the Energy Community Secretariat, and international investors outlined the “red lines,” the crossing of which could jeopardize Ukraine’s European integration and reconstruction financing.
Aron Kerpel-Fronius, Energy Policy Officer at the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine, made it clear that NEURC’s independence is a fundamental requirement under Negotiating Chapter 15 (“Energy”) and the Ukraine Facility financial assistance instrument.
“Strengthening the Regulator’s independence is a priority for us across all work streams. It is an important milestone in our Ukraine Plan, linked to quarterly payments from the Ukraine Facility to the state budget. A well-resourced, autonomous, and impartial regulator is a prerequisite for investor confidence,” the EU representative emphasized.
Commenting on the legislative initiatives, Aron Kerpel-Fronius noted that the EU works closely with the Energy Community and fully supports its recommendations, particularly regarding the involvement of international experts in the selection of NEURC members:
“We fully support the Secretariat’s recommendations to have independently appointed members of the Selection Committee, perhaps as a temporary measure, who would have voting rights and participate in selecting the Regulator’s commissioners… After the ‘Midas’ scandal, this becomes even more significant for restoring donor trust.”
Andrej Juris, Head of the ECRB Unit at the Energy Community Secretariat, confirmed that the Secretariat received a request from the relevant Verkhovna Rada committee and provided its official comments and recommendations on Draft Law No. 14282 about a week ago.
The Secretariat’s key recommendations concern the transparency of the selection process and the elimination of conflicts of interest:
“We provided recommendations that Selection Committee members should not represent any organization—whether state or commercial—that is influenced by NEURC’s powers. Another aspect is the standardization of interviews to ensure equal conditions for all candidates,” noted Andrej Juris.
He specifically addressed the participation of international representatives in the selection process, calling it a tool for increasing trust:
“We recommended that representatives of international organizations be members of this committee… This does not work against Ukraine’s interests. It is a measure, I would even say a temporary measure, to build trust in the process… Representatives of the European Commission, the Energy Community Secretariat, and perhaps one more representative from a key international institution.”
Jan Haizmann, Managing Partner of Correggio Consulting BV, explained how frequent legislative changes affect the cost of capital for Ukraine.
“Investors love transparency. Investors will not make decisions to invest in countries where decision-making is opaque… Part of this picture is an independent regulator that has the authority to fulfill its role and is not dependent on government or political pressure,” underlined Jan Haizmann.
He also cautioned against manual government intervention in technical market processes, such as market coupling: “The government must stay out of the technical development of market processes.”
Regarding the Regulator’s funding, the experts agreed it must be sufficient to attract professionals. Jan Haizmann used the well-known phrase: “If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys,” emphasizing that competent people are expensive, but this makes the system more resilient. He also noted that given Ukraine’s budget deficit, funding NEURC through market participant levies is a viable option:
“The market does not object to making contributions to the functioning of a regulatory body whose function is to protect the integrity of the market.”
The meeting moderator, Andriy Kulykov, summarized the discussion by noting that without a predictable arbiter in the energy sector, there can be no investment.
Participants agreed that 2026 will be a decisive year. As Aron Kerpel-Fronius noted: “We do not see a scenario where a law that weakens the Regulator’s independence would be adopted. Passing a high-quality law on NEURC will certainly facilitate smoother EU accession negotiations.”
Energy Club will continue systematic monitoring of legislative initiatives regarding NEURC reform and will keep the market informed on the compliance of proposed changes with European standards.
