First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Energy Denys Shmyhal took part in President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s dialogue with Canadian business representatives. The discussion focused on projects where Ukrainian and Canadian partners are already successfully cooperating, as well as promising areas for further cooperation.
The event was attended by executives and top managers of Canadian companies and organisations, including Business Council of Canada, Aecon Group, AGI, AKA Energy Systems, Bank of Nova Scotia, Canadian Commercial Corporation, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Canada Ukraine Chamber of Commerce, CCC, CIBC, Export Development Canada, Fairfax, Hatch, Investment Management Corp of Ontario, Jacob Capital Management Inc, Royal Bank of Canada, Shift Health, Toronto-Dominion Bank and Windermere's Investment Corp.
According to Denys Shmyhal, the needs of Ukraine’s energy sector over the coming decade are estimated at no less than USD 91 billion.
“In February, together with my Canadian counterpart Tim Hodgson, we signed a Memorandum on Strategic Cooperation between Ukraine and Canada in the energy sector. Its main focus is not ‘assistance’ but ‘investment’. The political doors are open. Now it is up to business to come forward with concrete projects,” Denys Shmyhal noted.
The First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Energy said that Ukraine is removing barriers for businesses. Three levels of lending for new energy projects have already been established in Ukraine. The process of connecting new generation has also been streamlined: the period for issuing technical specifications has been reduced from 10 days to 2 days, while the number of required documents has been reduced from seven to two.
Denys Shmyhal also announced the launch of a tender for the construction of 1.5 GW of new highly flexible generation. The scale of auction-based support in 2026 has been increased more than threefold, to 1 GW.
“Ukraine has what Canadian energy businesses need in Europe: a large market integrated into the EU, resources, demand for energy capital and equipment for decades to come, and a strategic location. Canada, in turn, has long-term capital, technologies, engineering expertise and financial risk-mitigation instruments. We propose combining these advantages, establishing new transatlantic energy value chains, ensuring Ukraine’s and Europe’s energy security, and strengthening Canada’s economic presence in the European energy market,” Denys Shmyhal said.
