India has proposed a three-part ceasefire plan to Ukraine and Russia that calls for an end to attacks on energy and other infrastructure, the assurance of uninterrupted exports of grain and energy resources through the Black Sea, and a halt to attacks on commercial vessels.
This was reported on October 7 by the Hindustan Times, citing sources familiar with the proposal. The full text of the Indian initiative has not yet been made public.
According to the publication, the first point calls for a halt to attacks on energy facilities and other critical infrastructure.
The second concerns ensuring the unimpeded passage of grain and energy resources through Black Sea ports.
The third calls for a halt to attacks on commercial shipping in the Black Sea.
According to the Hindustan Times, the proposal was presented to Ukrainian leaders during a visit by Indian Foreign Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar to Kyiv on September 3. He discussed the initiative in separate meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga.
The Indian initiative combines elements of several other proposals for a partial ceasefire. According to the publication, Egypt and Turkey proposed focusing on the safety of commercial shipping and grain exports through the Black Sea, while the U.S. proposal primarily concerned a halt to attacks on energy infrastructure.
On October 2, Sybiga confirmed that Ukraine had received ceasefire proposals from India, Turkey, Egypt, and the U.S., and described the Indian proposal as the most comprehensive. He noted that Kyiv is ready to consider various formats of a ceasefire, including an energy and Black Sea ceasefire, provided it also extends to port infrastructure.
On October 4, Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar also publicly confirmed that New Delhi had shifted in recent months from general calls for peace to direct consultations with Moscow and Kyiv. According to him, the Indian side is discussing the safety of shipping in the Black Sea, the export of grain and energy resources, as well as the possibility of a mutual renunciation of certain types of attacks.
One of the motivations behind the Indian initiative is New Delhi’s interest in the stability of energy supplies and the security of maritime transport. According to the Hindustan Times, nearly 30% of Russian energy supplies to India pass through Black Sea ports. In recent weeks, attacks on commercial vessels have led to supply disruptions and rising freight costs.
In addition, five Indian sailors have been killed in attacks on merchant ships in the region over the past few weeks, prompting Indian authorities to repeatedly call for an end to attacks on civilian shipping.
Russia and Ukraine have not yet officially announced their direct responses to all three points of the Indian plan. The Hindustan Times reports on ongoing contacts between the parties, though details of these talks have not been disclosed.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry previously stated that Kyiv is ready for a complete and unconditional ceasefire, as well as for separate agreements to halt attacks on energy and food infrastructure.
More than two-thirds of Ukrainians planning to buy an apartment pay attention to the availability of a backup power supply and independent heating, according to the results of a survey by “OLX Real Estate.”
According to the study, 68% of potential buyers consider a backup power supply in case of power outages to be important, compared to 49% in 2025. Thus, over the course of a year, the share of buyers paying attention to a home’s energy independence has risen by 19 percentage points. The availability of autonomous heating is also important to 68% of respondents.
“Energy sustainability has effectively become on par with many ‘traditional’ characteristics of an apartment or house,” notes the OLX report.
At the same time, the main criterion when buying an apartment remains its cost—82% of respondents cited price as important. In second place is the total area of the home—79%.
The number of rooms and the city neighborhood are considered by 77% of potential buyers each. A good floor plan or renovation, as well as the property’s stage of completion, are important to 76% of respondents; infrastructure and the building’s exterior are important to 73%; and the floor level is important to 72%.
At the same time, the war has significantly changed Ukrainians’ security requirements for real estate. 67% of potential buyers consider the distance from strategic facilities, and the presence of a shelter directly in the building is important to 60%.
At the same time, traditional advantages of a property’s location are less important. Proximity to the metro was cited as important by 46% of respondents, and a location near the city center by 45%.
The main reason for purchasing real estate remains the desire to improve current living conditions—47% of respondents cited this as their motivation. Another 42% want to acquire their own private space, 23% plan to move into a more spacious home, 20% view the purchase as a way to improve their standard of living, and 11% want to change the neighborhood where they live.
The investment component remains significant, though it takes a back seat to purchasing a home for personal use. Twenty-eight percent of potential buyers view real estate as an investment. Specifically, 19% expect to generate income in the future by renting out the property or reselling it.
Thus, the survey results indicate a shift in Ukrainian buyers’ priorities: alongside price, square footage, and location, a property’s ability to function during power outages and its level of security are becoming increasingly important.
According to OLX, attitudes toward backup power have changed particularly noticeably: while in 2025 approximately one in two potential buyers considered this factor, by 2026 the figure had risen to more than two-thirds.
Source: “OLX Real Estate” study.
More than 2 million consumers are already receiving new offers from suppliers for the 2026–2027 heating season. The stated price of gas is about 34 bani per kWh—approximately 20% higher than in the previous season.
The heating season will run from November 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027. At the same time, the final amount on bills will depend not only on the established tariff cap but also on the actual cost of gas purchased by suppliers for storage and additional deliveries during the winter.
Gas prices on the European market currently remain high. As a result, energy experts are warning of the risk of a significant increase in heating costs, especially for large buildings and high-consumption businesses.
Rising gas prices may also affect the prices of goods and services, as businesses factor higher heating and energy costs into their budgets.
DTEK and Dragon Capital have established an investment hub to attract funding for Ukraine’s energy sector, whose funding needs are estimated at $100 billion, the energy holding company announced.
“The hub brings together representatives from the public and private sectors to develop concrete and practical solutions that will help attract more investment into Ukraine’s energy sector,” commented DTEK CEO Maksym Timchenko, whose remarks were quoted in a statement posted by the energy holding company on its Telegram channel on Friday.
It is noted that more than $100 billion may be needed to rebuild Ukraine’s energy sector and create new facilities, and the Investment Hub is intended to facilitate the attraction of these funds.
“The main goal is to make Ukraine’s energy system more modern and resilient in order to strengthen the country’s energy security,” DTEK emphasized.
As previously reported, DTEK invested 101.7 billion hryvnias in Ukraine’s energy sector from 2022 to 2025.
In total, Rinat Akhmetov’s SCM Group, which includes DTEK, has invested over $4.3 billion in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war, of which approximately $1 billion has gone toward rebuilding facilities destroyed by Russia.
SCM is currently launching a global initiative called “Invest in Ukraine,” calling on international businesses to invest in Ukraine today, without waiting for the war to end.
According to the Serbian business media outlet Parametar, the Bulgarian state-owned company Bulgargaz has received a 10-year license for wholesale natural gas supplies in Serbia, opening the door for yet another major regional player to compete for Serbian consumers.
As Parametar analyzed, the significance of this decision lies not merely in the emergence of yet another licensed company. Bulgargaz has its own procurement portfolio and access to gas infrastructure in several Central and Southeastern European countries.
The company already holds the necessary licenses and permits to trade and supply gas in Greece, Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia, and operates in Moldova through its subsidiary, Bulgargaz North.
Of particular importance to Serbia is the interconnector with Bulgaria, with a capacity of approximately 1.8 billion cubic meters per year. Via Bulgaria, the Serbian market can receive Azerbaijani gas, as well as LNG arriving in the region through Greek terminals.
Bulgargaz will potentially be able to offer large Serbian enterprises a comprehensive supply package—from LNG procurement and regasification to transportation through Bulgaria and delivery of gas to Serbia.
For now, however, the discussion is limited to obtaining a license. Bulgargaz has not yet announced any major contracts with Serbian consumers. Therefore, the key indicator of a genuine market entry will be the booking of cross-border capacity and the signing of the first contracts.
The Serbian gas market is formally open to competition, but in reality remains highly concentrated. According to the latest complete AERS data for 2024, the state-owned company Srbijagas accounted for about 78% of gas sales to end consumers, Novi Sad-Gas for about 3.9%, Yugorosgaz for 3.2%, and each of the remaining suppliers accounted for less than 2%.
At the same time, the market infrastructure is changing. There are three gas transmission system operators in Serbia: Transportgas Srbija, Gastrans, and Yugorosgaz-Transport. In 2026, Transportgas received an operating license, and Serbia joined the regional platform for booking gas transmission capacity, which should facilitate new suppliers’ access to cross-border routes.
The arrival of Bulgargaz does not in itself mean lower prices or a significant redistribution of the market. However, if the Bulgarian company begins to actually supply gas to Serbian industrial enterprises, the Serbia-Bulgaria interconnector will gradually transform from infrastructure for diversifying supplies into a tool for real competition among suppliers.
According to Serbian Economist, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury has extended the operating license of the Serbian oil company NIS until October 30, 2026, allowing the company to continue its current operations after the previous permit expires on September 30.
The license extension means that NIS will be able to continue its operations, including the purchase and refining of crude oil, the production of petroleum products, and their supply to the Serbian market.
NIS has been subject to U.S. sanctions due to the company’s ownership structure and the involvement of Russian capital. Gazprom and Gazprom Neft entities remain the key Russian shareholders, while the Serbian government holds a large minority stake.
For Serbia, the issue of NIS’s operations is of strategic importance. The company operates the country’s only oil refinery in Pančevo and the largest network of gas stations, and it also holds key positions in the supply of petroleum products to the domestic market.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has previously stated on multiple occasions that Belgrade is negotiating with the U.S. side in an effort to ensure the uninterrupted operation of NIS while simultaneously finding a long-term solution to the issue of Russian ownership.
The one-month extension of the operating license eliminates the immediate risk of the company ceasing operations in early October, but it does not definitively resolve the issue of sanctions. In effect, Belgrade and NIS shareholders have been granted additional time to find a model for changing the ownership structure that is acceptable to OFAC.
Separately, negotiations are ongoing regarding the possible sale of the Russian stake. Throughout 2026, potential participants in the future deal included Hungary’s MOL and the UAE’s ADNOC, but the final structure of a possible deal has not yet been agreed upon.
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