Tolk Group of Companies: "Energy Club is a place where energy has a voice, character and heart"

In 2026, Energy Club celebrates 10 years of operation. In the run-up to the anniversary year, the Club continues a series of interviews with member companies to hear their feedback: why they joined the community at one time, what practical value they see in membership, which formats they consider the most useful, and what role they see Energy Club playing for the energy market of Ukraine.

Iryna Beresneva, CEO of Tolk Ukraine LLC, a company within the Tolk Group of Companies, shared her vision.

Iryna Beresneva

In her responses, Iryna Beresneva speaks of the Energy Club as a platform where energy has a voice, and market participants can not only exchange information, but also form a common position, openly discuss complex issues, and seek practical solutions for the development of the industry.

The interview discusses the role of the Energy Club as a communication center for the energy market, the importance of trust between industry participants, the value of forums, closed meetings, online discussions, analytics and interviews, as well as the Club’s initiatives that help shape a new culture of the Ukrainian energy sector.

How long has your company been a member of the Energy Club and why did you decide to join the Club at one time?

The Tolk Group of Companies has been a member of the Energy Club since 2021.

We already understood then that the energy market needs not only rules and regulations, but also a lively professional dialogue between those who work “in the energy field” every day: suppliers, generation, traders, RES, regulators, experts.

We joined the Energy Club because we felt that this is not just a club of interests, but a platform where the energy industry has a voice. Where you can not only listen, but also be heard. For us, as a group of suppliers, it was important to be within a professional community that does not observe the market from the sidelines, but participates in its formation.

What practical value does participation in the Energy Club bring to your company?

For us, participation in the Energy Club is, first of all, access to a high-quality professional environment. Here you can get not just news or formal information, but also understand the mood of the market, the positions of key players, the logic of decisions and risks that are still being formed.

The practical value is in the dialogue. In the opportunity to discuss complex topics not behind the scenes, but openly and professionally. In the opportunity to be part of a common market position when it is really needed. For the company, it is also recognition, reputation, new contacts, but most importantly – the feeling that you are not alone in difficult challenges.

I often say: energy is not only about megawatts, contracts and imbalances. It is also about trust. And Energy Club does a lot to maintain this trust between market participants.

Which Energy Club formats are most useful to you: forums, closed meetings, online discussions, working groups, interviews, analytics? Why them?

Each format has its own value.

Forums are a big picture of the market. They show trends, mood, direction, and sometimes what everyone is thinking about but doesn’t dare to say out loud yet.

Closed meetings are especially important to us, because that’s where the most honest professional conversation often takes place. Without unnecessary pathos, but with real questions and a search for solutions.

Online discussions are about speed. In our market, sometimes a week is equal to a whole quarter of changes, so the opportunity to quickly discuss a topical issue is very valuable.

Interviews and analytics are about forming a professional position. This is a way not to just react to changes, but to explain them, influence the discussion and leave a meaningful mark behind.

In short: forums provide scale, closed meetings provide depth, online provide speed, and analytics and interviews provide market memory.

How do you think the role of Energy Club for the energy market of Ukraine has changed over the past 10 years?

Over the past 10 years, Energy Club has grown from a professional platform into a true communication center for the energy market. It is no longer just a place where events are held. It is a space where energy market participants learn to speak openly and honestly with each other.

Energy Club’s role has especially increased during the war. When the market is experiencing turbulence, generation destruction, shortages, regulatory changes and constant uncertainty, it is very important to have a platform where you can gather different parties and at least start an honest conversation.

For me, Energy Club today is such a professional “gathering point” of energy. A place where chaos turns into dialogue, and dialogue into the possibility of a solution.

What would you wish for Energy Club for the next 10 years?

I would like Energy Club not to lose the main thing – the courage to ask difficult questions and answer them together with us. . . Because the market sometimes)) solves easy questions on its own. But for difficult ones, trust, professionalism and a platform where there is respect for different positions are needed.

For the next 10 years, I wish the Club even greater influence, international presence, a strong educational direction and further development of its own “energy school” for a new generation of specialists. We really need young professionals, female leaders, experts who think not only of today, but of the future of the Ukrainian energy industry.

10 years is already a good age: still a lot of energy, but already enough experience to give wise advice to the market.

So I wish the Club a long, active, influential and very wise professional life.

May the Club continue to be a place where not just discussion, but content is born.

Is there an event, discussion or initiative of the Energy Club that was especially memorable to you? team?

Yes, two topics were particularly memorable for me, which very accurately reflect today’s times.

The first is the Energy Club initiative, dedicated to female leadership in energy during wartime. For me, it was not just an event about the role of women in the industry, but a very honest conversation about how energy is held up today: not only on technology, regulations and megawatts, but also on people who know how to act decisively, deeply and at the same time humanly.

The second very strong topic was the discussion about the sustainability and transformation of Ukraine’s energy system in the new reality. It was memorable because the focus was not on theory, but on practice: how to balance the system during wartime, how to develop decentralization, distributed generation, energy storage and new models sustainability.

For our team, it is close, because we see every day: the future of energy is no longer the old vertical system, but a more flexible, living, intelligent model, where technology, responsibility, and trust between market participants are important.

It is precisely such Energy Club initiatives that are changing the culture of the industry. They show that the strength of energy today is not only in infrastructure, but also in the ability of the market to think ahead, unite, and build a new energy reality even in times of war.

In one sentence: Energy Club for your company is…

Energy Club for the Tolk Group of Companies is a place where energy has a voice, character, and heart.