The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will enable Ukrainian banks to provide up to 900 million euros ($1.05 billion) in new loans by sharing credit risks, the EBRD announced in a press release on July 7.

The loans will target companies in agribusiness, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, transport and logistics, as well as energy security projects.

The mechanism will be announced at the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) in Rome on July 10-11. This represents the largest risk-sharing facility implemented in Ukraine since the war began, according to the EBRD's press release.

Due to destructive Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, the EBRD will also focus on supporting distributed generation and renewable energy projects.

Russian forces have damaged most of Ukraine's thermal power plants and about 30% of power stations, disrupting nearly two-thirds of the country's total electricity generation, the bank says.

The EU, together with other EBRD donors, has developed plans to de-risk renewable energy investments to attract more private capital, which they will announce at the URC.

Nearly one-third of EBRD's wartime financing to Ukraine — 2.4 billion euros ($2.8 billion) — has gone to the energy sector. This includes support for state-owned electricity transmission and gas companies, as well as financing for hydropower and small-scale distributed generation.

In a pre-URC press release, the EBRD also expressed interest in supporting the development of a natural graphite deposit in Ukraine following the U.S.-Ukraine minerals agreement. Graphite is a strategic material used in batteries and defense applications.

The bank will launch the second phase of digitizing Ukraine's paper-based geological data archive to make information about mineral deposits more accessible, the EBRD reports.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, the EBRD has invested over 7.2 billion euros ($8.4 billion) in Ukraine's economy.

Zelensky, Trump discussed replacement of Ukraine’s US ambassador, source says

Oksana Markarova has held the post since April 2021, and played a central role in coordinating U.S. military and financial support during the early phases of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The Kyiv IndependentTim Zadorozhnyy

Ukraine will receive €42.5 million ($45.7 million) from international partners to repair the protective arch over the Chornobyl nuclear plant's destroyed reactor, Environment and Natural Resources Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk announced on June 26.

A Russian Shahed-type drone struck the New Safe Confinement over Chornobyl's destroyed 4th reactor on February 14.

The structure built to contain radioactive material was damaged, no serious radiation leaks were caused.

France pledged €10.6 million ($11.4 million), the United Kingdom committed €6.9 million ($7.4 million), and the European Commission contributed €25 million ($26.9 million) toward the repairs.

"This is further evidence that Ukraine does not face its challenges alone, but has reliable friends," Hrynchuk wrote on Facebook.

The funding was announced at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) headquarters in London during a meeting of the Chornobyl International Cooperation Account Assembly of Contributors – the governing body of the fund created to address Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant issues.

Ukraine has already surveyed the building's structure and completed preparatory work, Hrynchuk said. In March, €400,000 ($430,000) was allocated from the special fund for this purpose.

The assembly discussed plans for temporary repairs and further work to fully restore the arch's integrity and functionality.

Chornobyl was the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986, contaminating areas across Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia.

After an protective structure was built over the destroyed reactor to contain radioactive material in the months following the disaster, the current arch, an international project built as a more permanent solution, was completed in 2017.

Chornobyl isn’t safe anymore... again

Chornobyl disaster occurred in the early hours of April 26, 1986, in Soviet Ukraine. Nearly 39 years after the worst nuclear disaster in history, Russia’s brazen attack on the $2 billion New Safe Confinement (the sarcophagus enclosing the destroyed reactor) in February 2025 poses a new potential radioactive danger as engineers race to repair the damage. The Kyiv Independent’s Kollen Post dives into why the restoration is not as simple as it may seem.

The Kyiv IndependentKollen Post

Ukrainian state grid operator Ukrenergo's supervisory board has appointed Vitaliy Zaichenko, the company's current chief dispatcher, as its new head, Ukrainian media reported on June 23.

The appointment comes after ten months of interim leadership following the controversial dismissal of former CEO Volodymyr Kudrytskyi in September 2024.

The company has been under temporary management of Oleksiy Brekht while the supervisory board struggled with prolonged disputes over the selection process.

Ukrenergo, which operates Ukraine's electricity transmission system and is a member of the European electricity grid network (ENTSO-E), plays a critical role in the country's energy security, especially during wartime when Russian attacks have repeatedly targeted energy infrastructure.

Zaichenko beat out two other finalists: Oleksiy Brekht, the interim head of Ukrenergo, and Ivan Yuryk, former acting head of Ukrainian Railways.

The supervisory board's June 4 attempt to elect a new CEO failed amid conflict with the Energy Ministry, which changed appointment rules without consulting the Energy Community Secretariat, drawing criticism from European partners.

The new rules complicated the selection process by requiring five out of seven supervisory board votes instead of the previous four needed to elect a chairman.

According to Ukrainian MP Max Khlapuk, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) threatened to block 141 million euros ($152 million) in funding and demand early repayment of 533 million euros ($574 million) already received over the rule changes.

Former Ukrenergo CEO Volodymyr Kudrytskyi was dismissed on Sept.2, 2024, after President Volodymyr Zelensky called for his resignation over alleged failures to protect substations from Russian missiles and drones.

Kudrytskyi disputed this account, saying he initiated the supervisory board meeting himself, though he did not reveal the reasons for his dismissal.

Following Kudrytskyi's dismissal, supervisory board chairman Daniel Dobbeni and member Peder Andersen resigned early, citing political pressure in personnel decisions.

Ukrainian energy giant to build $115 million solar program with British partner

Ukraine’s largest private energy company DTEK and British clean energy group Octopus Energy have launched a program to install rooftop solar panels and battery storage systems at Ukrainian businesses and public institutions, DTEK announced in a press release on June 23.

The Kyiv IndependentYana Prots