The Moldovan government will propose to parliament that a state of emergency be declared in the energy sector for a period of 60 days, starting March 25, 2026, following the disconnection of the main Vulcănești–Isaccea power line as a result of Russian strikes on Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure. This was reported on the Moldovan government’s official website.
The Vulcănești–Isaccea line is the main artery for electricity imports and supplies 60–70% of the consumption on the right bank of Moldova. Authorities estimate a potential power deficit during peak hours at up to 350–400 MW starting March 25.
The Moldovan government stated that the state of emergency will allow for the rapid procurement of energy resources and emergency equipment, faster distribution of necessary resources, and, if necessary, the implementation of measures to restrict consumption and special operating rules for economic operators to protect critical infrastructure and social institutions.
At the same time, officials in Chisinau emphasize that consumers are currently being supplied with electricity from domestic sources and imports via alternative routes, including four 110 kV interconnection lines with Romania. These schemes have been used before, notably during the blackouts on January 31, 2026.
According to the Moldovan state agency Moldpres, citing the National Crisis Management Center, downed drones were discovered near the Isaccea-Vulcănești line, limiting access for technical crews and requiring demining before repair work can begin. Inspections are being conducted in coordination with transmission system operators from Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine.
McLaren Racing and Schneider Electric, a global leader in energy technologies, announced today that Schneider Electric will become the official energy technology partner of McLaren Racing, including the McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team, the Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team, the McLaren F1 Academy, and the McLaren United Autosports WEC Hypercar Team.
Together, Schneider and McLaren Racing will develop and implement energy technologies that deliver maximum performance under the most demanding conditions—both in ensuring a reliable power supply directly at race tracks around the world and at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, UK. The partnership is rooted in a shared culture based on the intelligent use of data, accelerated innovation, and engineering excellence.
Schneider and McLaren Racing will build on their supplier relationship, which spans over 20 years, to tackle complex energy challenges where performance and uptime are critical. This will include optimizing existing assets—including the wind tunnel, manufacturing facilities, data centers, and other sites—using sustainable systems to reduce energy consumption, promoting electrification through advanced energy technologies, and leveraging digital twin technology to generate data analytics for improved efficiency and sustainability.
Zack Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, said:
“We are delighted to welcome Schneider Electric as our official energy technology partner. This partnership is built on a strong foundation and reflects our shared commitment to innovation and energy efficiency. By combining Schneider’s expertise in energy technologies with McLaren’s pursuit of peak performance, we will unlock new ways to make our operations smarter and more efficient.”
Olivier Blum, CEO of Schneider Electric, noted:
“Racing is one of the most demanding environments for demonstrating the value of advanced energy and digital technologies. McLaren Racing pushes every system to its limits—that’s where our expertise in performance, reliability, and efficiency is crucial. We are proud to become McLaren’s official energy technology partner, providing energy analytics they can rely on both on and off the track.”
About Schneider Electric
Schneider Electric is a global leader in energy technologies, driving efficiency and sustainability through the electrification, automation, and digitalization of industry, business, and residential spaces. The company’s technologies enable buildings, data centers, factories, infrastructure, and power grids to function as open, interconnected ecosystems, enhancing productivity, resilience, and sustainability.
The company’s portfolio includes smart devices, software-defined architectures, AI-based systems, digital services, and professional consulting services. With 160,000 employees and 1 million partners in over 100 countries, Schneider Electric consistently ranks among the world’s most sustainable companies.
Learn more at https://www.se.com/ua/uk/
In 2025, the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group provided Ukraine with nearly €1.5 billion in new financing for energy, infrastructure, small business support, and European integration projects, according to a statement released by the financial institution on Thursday.
“Today, more than ever, Europe stands with Ukraine. It is a priority for us, and our focus is clear: energy, heating, water, transport, health, and education—the systems that underpin daily life and the country’s resilience,” said EIB President Nadia Calviño.
The release notes that since 2022, Ukraine has already received more than EUR4 billion in financing under European Union (EU) guarantees to strengthen critical infrastructure, support municipal services, and maintain economic activity in the context of war.
According to the bank, in 2025, a EUR300 million transaction was signed with Naftogaz of Ukraine to replenish gas reserves, which was supplemented by a EUR127 million EU grant, as well as EUR 120 million for PJSC Ukrhydroenergo to restore strategic hydroelectric power plants and EUR 200 million through partner banks to help communities restore and modernize centralized heating systems.
Three recovery programs totaling EUR 740 million, including EUR 100 million signed in 2025, are financing the reconstruction of water supply, heat supply, and municipal infrastructure (schools, hospitals, housing) in more than 150 communities, with more than 500 projects underway across the country.
Separately, in 2025, the EIB signed the Ukraine Water Recovery project for EUR 100 million to repair and modernize water supply and sanitation systems damaged by the war.
A loan of EUR 134 million has been allocated to transport and European integration infrastructure for the repair of key bridges and roads and the modernisation of border infrastructure along the “solidarity routes”, as well as EUR 40 million for the deployment of an EU-compatible 112 emergency assistance system in Ukraine.
Regarding support for the private sector, the EIB noted the signing of agreements with seven Ukrainian banks under the EU4Business guarantee program, which is expected to unlock approximately EUR 250 million in financing for approximately 4,600 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The report also mentions investments of EUR 15 million in the Ukraine Phoenix Tech Fund and EUR 50 million in the Amber Dragon Ukraine Infrastructure Fund, as well as a EUR 70 million loan to Ukrgasbank to expand access to long-term financing for SMEs and mid-cap companies.
In addition, together with the European Commission, an EU export credit guarantee instrument worth EUR 300 million is being promoted under the InvestEU program to support European companies exporting to Ukraine.
According to reports, in 2026, the EIB plans to maintain its priority on energy sustainability, expand support for the private sector and SME financing, and strengthen assistance to social and municipal infrastructure and advisory and technical support as part of Ukraine’s preparations for EU accession.
Presidents of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic and Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev held the first session of the Strategic Partnership Council and outlined the priorities of the economic bloc – from energy and investment to trade, agriculture and tourism, Serbian Economist reports.
The key practical outcome was the formalization of a package of bilateral documents. Seven agreements and memoranda were exchanged in Belgrade, including agreements on the design, construction and operation of a gas turbine power plant in Serbia, cooperation in the field of food security, a memorandum between the ministries of economy, as well as documents on media and communications, culture (for 2026-2030), sports and interaction of health insurance systems.
The leaders explicitly call energy cooperation the basis for the next step – electricity production based on Azerbaijani gas. Aliyev said Baku has decided to increase natural gas exports to Serbia, linking this to plans for electricity generation and potential future exports.
In the Serbian interpretation, the gas-fired power plant project is already tied to the parameters: Vucic said that Srbijagas and SOCAR are in discussions, and the goal is to reach the launch of the plant with an installed capacity of 500 MW by 2029 (locations are considered in the Niš area).
Against the backdrop of the political increase in the level of relations, the sides are once again returning to the issue of trade turnover. According to the Serbian National Statistics Office, the foreign trade turnover with Azerbaijan in 2024 amounted to $512.6 million (5-fold growth), with the main contribution provided by the purchase of crude oil and oil products.
Baku, for its part, estimates trade turnover in 2025 at $135 million and notes the growth of imports of Serbian goods by 55% – this data was cited by Azerbaijani Finance Minister Sahil Babayev on the eve of the visit.
It was also noted at the Council meeting that direct flights between Baku and Belgrade should start in May 2026, which is expected to strengthen tourism and business contacts.
In the coming months, governments and line ministers should “land” political agreements in the form of concrete projects. Vucic and Aliyev have publicly recorded that they expect quick results before the next visit of the Serbian president to Azerbaijan during this year.
https://t.me/relocationrs/2271
The Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced the allocation of EUR 500,000 to support Ukraine’s energy sector.
“Slovenia has reaffirmed its solidarity with Ukraine, which is experiencing its worst energy crisis since the start of the war. We will add EUR 500,000 to support Ukraine’s energy sector,” the ministry said in a statement on social media on Friday.
The country’s Foreign Ministry also reports that since the beginning of Russian aggression, Slovenia has already allocated EUR 61 million to help Ukraine.
Ukraine’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 1.8% in 2025, which is lower than the previous estimate of 2% by the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting (IER) and the Ministry of Economy’s forecast of 2.2%.
According to the institute’s Monthly Economic Monitoring of Ukraine (MEMU), economic growth was 5.2% in November, but slowed to 3.4% in December amid ongoing Russian attacks on energy and railway infrastructure. Positive dynamics at the end of the year were supported by the contribution of agriculture, where gross value added (GVA) growth was 54% in November and 35% in December, as well as the trade sector (GVA growth was 5.9%), business services, and public services.
“This growth was partly supported by the population’s continued efforts to adapt to regular planned and emergency power cuts,” the IER explains.
At the same time, December saw a significant drop in GVA in the extractive industry — by about 19% (compared to December 2024) due to the negative impact of Russian attacks on gas, ore, and coal production. Electricity and gas production and distribution fell by 18% (compared to December 2024) due to large-scale damage to generation facilities, which led to power outages in the Odesa, Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, and the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant lost its external power supply again on January 2.
Real GDP in the manufacturing industry fell by 1.9% in December (compared to December 2024) due to problems with access to electricity, but the decline was mitigated by businesses adapting through the use of generators, cogeneration plants, and solar panels, as well as by defense purchases. In the transport sector, the decline in GDP accelerated to 10% due to massive shelling of ports and railway infrastructure.
In December, the energy sector showed a 53% increase in electricity imports compared to November, to 640,000 MWh, while there were no exports. In total, 762 MW of new gas generation was commissioned in Ukraine in 2025, and the capacity of qualified cogeneration plants exempt from excise tax reached 3.1 GW.
Consumer inflation in December fell to 8% compared to 2024, while compared to November 2025, the consumer price index rose by only 0.2%, which was one of the lowest figures for December since the country’s independence. According to the IER, the slowdown in inflation was facilitated by a good harvest, stable world food and oil prices, as well as moderate consumer demand and high competition among non-food products.
As reported, the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine estimates Ukraine’s real GDP growth for 2025 at 2.2%. According to its information, the economy is growing thanks to domestic trade, construction, thanks to reconstruction projects, as well as the processing industry, in particular, the production of defense products and metallurgy. On the other hand, economic growth was hampered by massive Russian missile attacks on power generation facilities and, for the first time in years of full-scale war, on gas production infrastructure; lower yields of certain crops due to unfavorable weather conditions – a 26.9% decrease in soybean yields, a 15.8% decrease in sunflower yields, a 7.6% decrease in rapeseed yields, and a nearly 14% decrease in sugar beet yields; however, grain yields increased by more than 3%.
The ICU investment group also lowered its forecast for Ukraine’s economic growth in 2026 to 1.2% from 2.1% in 2025, while in July 2025, the company predicted a 2.5% increase in GDP in 2025, and 2.8% in 2026 due to damage to energy and transport infrastructure, electricity shortages and complications with maritime exports, a gradual reduction in the state budget deficit and fiscal stimulus, as well as businesses delaying investments due to high security risks.
