Elementum Energy, a subsidiary of VR Capital Group, has chosen to integrate its energy storage system (ESS) with the Dnister Wind Farm, which has a total installed capacity of 100 MW, as part of its pilot ESS project in Ukraine to optimize power generation, as it considers this approach the most effective for renewable energy players, said the company’s commercial director, Roman Volosheniuk.
“We have adopted a scenario that is rarely considered in Ukraine—ES as a tool for optimizing our existing assets. Our pilot ES project, with a capacity of 10 MW and a storage capacity of 20 MWh, is designed to interact with our 100 MW wind farm. We view energy storage not as a separate, independent business, but as a tool for our own generation,” Volosheniuk said during Energy Storage Day-2026, organized by the Ukrainian Wind Energy Association.
He explained that the company decided not to pursue the first two scenarios—operating the ESS with state support based on the results of Ukrenergo’s auctions for ancillary services and price arbitrage—for a number of reasons.
“We have had negative experiences with state support—debts under the ‘green’ tariff, unilateral cuts to its rates, changes in liability conditions for imbalances—the list goes on. The next dominant scenario is price arbitrage. There we see large spreads, but there is a downside—high volatility and frequent changes in the regulatory environment,” Volosheniuk explained.
At the same time, he noted that the third scenario, which the company chose, appears to be the most effective, as it allows for combining several areas at once.
First, this makes it possible to apply classic arbitrage by shifting the timing of electricity production and sales, which allows for optimizing generation. Second, it creates an opportunity to balance the system and avoid unnecessary costs for paying for imbalances, which, according to Volosheniuk, account for every third MW*h of wind power generated.
Third, the UZE plus WPP scenario allows for optimizing the extent of electricity generation curtailments imposed by the system operator Ukrenergo during surplus hours.
“Accordingly, we have a combination of three scenarios and will switch to the one that is more profitable and effective. Our operating model shows that the optimal distribution of RES usage will look like this: arbitrage and working with curtailments account for 70% of RES usage, while another 30% is for managing imbalances. All that remains is to confirm the assumption—we expect to test the pilot in the near future,” explained the commercial director of Elementum Energy.
He emphasized that “the heart of our concept” is the development of our own software solution, which will combine all these scenarios in real time and automatically select and switch to the most productive one.
“All of this enables a stable business model for utilizing renewable energy sources: a combination of different areas of its operation and proprietary software tools for system management,” Volosheniuk concluded.
Elementum Energy, a subsidiary of VR Capital Group, is an international investor in Ukraine’s renewable energy sector. The company manages a portfolio of solar and wind power plants with a total capacity of 636 MW and continues to develop new projects in the field of wind energy and energy storage systems.
In early December 2024, Elementum Energy announced that it had acquired a 200 MW wind power project in western Ukraine and intends to prepare it for construction by the end of 2025.
The company also announced plans to commission the 60 MW “Danube” wind farm in southern Odesa Oblast by the end of 2026.
Elementum Energy reported on the development of a 10 MW small hydropower pilot project in late 2025.
Elementum Energy, a subsidiary of VR Capital Group operating in the renewable energy sector, plans to launch the 60 MW Dunay wind farm in the south of the Odesa region by the end of 2026, according to Olga Rybachuk, managing director of Elementum Energy and member of the board of the Ukrainian Wind Energy Association.
“We have already started construction and activated the turbine contract with Vestas. They are already being manufactured, all permits are in place, and the site is being completed. We hope that the wind farm will be connected to the grid by the end of 2026,” Rybachuk said at the UWEA’s final press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine agency on December 19.
In addition, according to her, the company has already reached the final stage of development of a 200 MW wind farm project in western Ukraine.
“This project should be ready for construction to begin in the first quarter of next year. We are very actively considering starting its construction in the second quarter of 2026,” Rybachuk said.
At the same time, she drew attention to the need for legislative regulation of one of the issues related to connecting new generation facilities to Ukrenergo substations, namely, providing investors with the opportunity to build the necessary facilities for such connection themselves.
“The construction and reconstruction of Ukrenergo substations for connection is an extremely long process, taking 2-3 years, which no project can afford. If we can independently answer to NEC for organizing the construction process, conducting our own tenders, and selecting contractors, then this project will fit into the construction timeframe of 1.5-2 years. This is what the power system needs, and it is very suitable in terms of resources and economic effects,” explained the managing director of Elementum Energy.
She stressed that making the appropriate amendments to the legislation is a critical issue.
“We very much hope that by 2028, the 200 MW wind farm will be supplying energy to Ukraine’s power grid,” Rybachuk emphasized.
As for the turbine manufacturer, she said that the company will most likely choose between Vestas and Nordex.
“In addition, we are working with the World Bank Group, IFC, which is very interested in financing Elementum projects and supports us in developing projects for sale on the open market, without any form of state support. The investment in this project is large, more than EUR 300 million. I agree that it cannot be done without financial partners. And, fortunately for us, we have a very powerful financial partner,” said the top manager of Elementum Energy.
Rybachuk also noted that the company plans to implement a pilot project for a 10 MW energy storage facility (ESF) with a capacity of 20 MWh, which it wants to build near one of its wind farms to test the joint operation of generation and ESF.
“We plan to see our ESS in operation by mid-2026. When we started this project, we were counting on our own funds, but soon the World Bank joined with a grant,” she said.
The company’s chosen operational model of WPP+ESS does not provide ancillary services to the transmission system operator, but rather involves working in time-shifted energy transfer modes, dealing with imbalances and constraints.
“In principle, storage systems should become an integral part of all new wind and solar projects because they minimize the specific component of renewable sources—imbalances,” the top manager believes.
At the same time, Rybachuk emphasized that the transmission system operator and distribution system operators limit renewable energy producers to 30-40% of their installed capacity at certain times.
“I think we cannot afford this, we cannot lose megawatts to restrictions,” she said, noting that resolving issues related to the operation of the UZE will also be a priority for the UEA in 2026.
According to her, the UZE has already been delivered to the site, and its assembly and connection will begin later this year.
As reported, at the same press conference, the chairman of the board of the Ukrainian Wind Energy Association (WEA), Andriy Konechenkov, noted that since the beginning of 2025, 324 MW of new wind power capacity has been built in Ukraine, while in the previous two years – between 2022 and the first quarter of 2025 – 248 MW of new wind power capacity was commissioned.
The country also has 534 MW of total installed capacity of energy storage systems (BESS).
Elementum Energy is an international investor in Ukraine’s renewable energy sector. The company manages a portfolio of solar and wind power plants with a total capacity of 636 MW and continues to develop new projects in the field of wind energy and energy storage systems.
In early December 2024, Elementum Energy announced that it had acquired a 200 MW wind power project in western Ukraine and intends to prepare it for construction in late 2025.
