Naftogaz Group will use a EUR 270 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and a EUR 140 million grant from the Norwegian government through the NORAD fund to purchase 1 billion cubic meters of gas as a matter of urgency.
“The funds received are extremely important for Naftogaz. They will allow us to purchase almost 1 billion cubic meters of gas, which is critical for the stable passage of the next heating season, especially in the context of war and regular attacks on our energy infrastructure. I am grateful to all the partners who help Naftogaz prepare for the next winter,” commented Roman Chumak, CEO of Naftogaz Group, in a statement on the company’s website on Monday.
Chumak emphasized that the financing is already available and expressed his gratitude to the EBRD, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway and the NORAD Foundation, as well as the Naftogaz team for the successful cooperation that helped to attract financing for gas purchases.
As noted, cooperation with international financial institutions is part of Naftogaz’s long-term strategy to diversify its supply sources and ensure Ukraine’s energy stability.
Earlier it was reported that on April 25, the EBRD confirmed the provision of a EUR 270 million loan to Naftogaz of Ukraine to create strategic gas reserves, Norway supplemented the loan provided under the state guarantee with a grant of EUR 139 million, which will come through the EBRD Special Crisis Response Fund.
“Naftogaz has previously received two EBRD loans totaling EUR 500 million, which were accompanied by guarantees from the United States, Norway, Germany, France, Canada and the Netherlands totaling EUR 275 million, as well as grant funding of EUR 187 million from Norway for emergency purchases of natural gas.
At the end of March, Dmytro Abramovich, a member of the Board and Commercial Director of Naftogaz Group, said that Ukraine needs to import 4.5-4.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas by November 1 this year.
The largest Ukrainian mobile operators Kyivstar and VF Ukraine (Vodafone Ukraine) have completed the exchange of frequencies in the 2100 MHz spectrum, which made it possible to eliminate the problem of “torn” spectrum, said Olga Ustinova, CEO of the company.
“We have completed the exchange of frequencies,” Ustinova said on the sidelines of the ‘SuperHumans’ forum organized by Forbes.
“Vodafone Ukraine and Kyivstar started the exchange of frequencies in late January, with Dnipropetrovs’k region being the last to be exchanged. As a result, the companies were able to form continuous 2X20 MHz bands in the 2100 MHz band, which allowed them to reduce costs through more efficient use of the resource and speed up data transmission.
“Kyivstar acquired a license for the use of additional radio frequency spectrum in the 2100 MHz band (3G and 4G tech-neutral) at an auction held by the National Commission for the State Regulation of Electronic Communications, Radio Frequency Spectrum and Postal Services (NCCS) on November 19, 2024. The acquired frequency band was not adjacent to the company’s existing one, so the company initiated the exchange process.
At its meeting on January 15, the NCCIR approved the exchange of frequencies in the 2100 MHz spectrum between Kyivstar and Vodafone Ukraine.
State-owned Oschadbank (Kyiv) earned UAH 4.8 billion in net profit in the first quarter of 2025, keeping the result at the level of the previous year, while net interest income increased by 39%, according to a press release from the financial institution.
“The current profit is driven by operating activities and was achieved through the efforts of the bank’s team aimed at continuing business growth. In response to the challenges posed by rising inflation, Oschad is actively improving its cost control mechanisms,” Oschadbank Chairman of the Board Serhiy Naumov commented on the results.
It is noted that in the first quarter of 2025, net interest income amounted to about UAH 7.4 billion, which is 39% or UAH 2 billion more than in the first quarter of 2024, while Oschadbank’s operating profit for this period amounted to almost UAH 5 billion.
“Currently, Oschadbank has sufficient liquidity and capital. Thus, the regulatory capital adequacy ratio of Oschadbank as of April 1, 2025 is 13.10%, which is significantly higher than the current NBU regulatory value of 9.25%,” the bank said.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, as of the beginning of 2025, Oschadbank ranked second in terms of total assets (UAH 963.39 billion, or 12.4%) among 61 banks in the country.
The bank’s net profit for 2024 amounted to UAH 7.9 billion, compared to UAH 6 billion in 2023, while operating profit increased by 20% to more than UAH 14 billion.
Forecast of unemployment rate in Ukraine according to methodology of International labor organization until 2025
The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) and the De Boomgaard Foundation are investing in the installation of 2,700 solar panels that will generate 1.6 million kWh of electricity annually for 23 Ukrainian hospitals in frontline regions.
According to a press release from the Dutch-Ukrainian charity LifeLine Ukraine, which is supporting the project on the Ukrainian side, the total cost of the project is €3.4 million.
The project is jointly supported by a consortium of partners from the Netherlands (Solarge) and Ukraine (Lifeline Ukraine and Energy Act Ukraine) and provides reliable and sustainable energy supplies to key healthcare facilities and, in the future, to educational institutions in the country.
Solar panels from Solarge have already been installed in two medical facilities in Mykolaiv, with plans to install them in 21 more hospitals.
In addition to solar panels, the hospitals will also receive batteries for storing electricity.
Stichting de Boomgaard intends to ask the EC to build 60 more hospitals along the front line after the completion of these 23 hospitals.
