Against the backdrop of the annexation of Crimea, ongoing fighting in Donbas, and a worsening crisis in industry and the economy, Ukrainian officials continue to operate as usual, creating time-tested kickback schemes in the energy sector.
Millions of hryvnias from the budget will go to a Cypriot shell company with a dubious reputation. As winter approached, many Ukrainians, including some members of the ruling elite, unexpectedly discovered that an energy crisis had quietly but surely crept up on the country. Thermal power plants in many regions began announcing that they were running out of coal. Russia froze coal supplies to Ukraine, and the very act of trading with an aggressor drew considerable public criticism.
The "dark 90s" have returned to Ukraine. And they've returned with a vengeance, exposing and highlighting long-standing management and organizational problems in the country's energy sector, as well as a profound lack of respect for citizens. This refers to the lack of any clear shutdown schedules or basic public explanations of the rationale and prospects for these measures.
Meanwhile, amid all this, a corruption scandal involving the purchase of African coal is raging. The situation is deteriorating further. The Ukrainian president is signing a document that allows (if necessary) the import of electricity from the Russian Federation. And if he signed it, then most likely the need already exists. Purchasing electricity from an aggressor is causing no less public outrage than purchasing coal. But the "disorderly" power outages are even more irritating. Since we've decided, let's buy it.
It so happens that the Ukrainian elite, formed under the tutelage of "big brother," has a strong taste for the so-called "rent" economy. This is when officials receive a fixed rent from their lucrative position. Simply put, it's a kickback. Breaking this pernicious habit, especially in the energy sector, where the cash flow runs into the billions, is extremely difficult. Therefore, the most high-profile corruption scandals and personnel battles for official positions occur in this sector. But victory or defeat doesn't lead to change: the pieces are rearranged and a new game begins on the same board.
The mechanism and process for purchasing electricity in such a sensitive situation is a crucial indicator, first and foremost for Ukraine's Western partners awaiting reforms. Not to mention society, which is also waiting. But, apparently, our "energy elite" either doesn't know how to live "any other way," or never intended to. Officials stubbornly try to introduce shell companies into the energy market, creating a second RosUkrenergo in the electricity import sector. As is well known, Deputy Minister Ulida has already paid for this with his post, signing an import permit for a "Horns and Hooves"-style firm—PJSC Holding Company Energomerezha, linked to Russian oligarch Konstantin Grigorishin and odious managers. According to media reports, the company's director, Dmitry Kryuchkov, has repeatedly encountered legal troubles related to corporate raiding, and he wasn't involved in imports at all. But the strangest thing here is that the Ministry of Energy officials were not at all bothered by the fact that the company "Energomerezha", which received permission to import electricity to Ukraine in huge volumes, had in fact not previously conducted any activity.
Ulida lost his job, but it didn't produce any logical results. Officials continue to hatch new schemes, citing Russian demands for cooperation with shadow companies. Our editorial office received a letter from the offshore company Perlisio Enterprises Limited, written to Igor Romanenko, head of Ukrinterenergo, offering to supply electricity from Russia. The director of the Cyprus-registered company is Gor Mikonyan; contact information includes a mobile phone number and email address. There is no corporate information about the company online. Meanwhile, the volumes of electricity supplied are also enormous. The fact of such negotiations with Cypriot offshore companies is indirectly confirmed by the response from Igor Romanenko, acting CEO of Ukrinterenergo: "Pre-contact preparations for importing electricity from Russia are currently underway. It is not yet known when deliveries will begin. Whether it will be InterRAO (whose representatives Perlisio identified themselves as representing in the letter – Ed.) or another company – I also cannot say at this time. Because “negotiations” are ongoing.
Our officials claim that it was the Russian side that initiated the installation of its own "gasket." Russia denies this: Olga Golant, press secretary for the Russian Ministry of Energy, emphasized that Russia does not insist on unknown shell companies or intermediaries handling electricity supplies to Ukraine. At the time of writing, InterRAO was unavailable for comment. Gor Mikonyan, director of the offshore company Perlisio Enterprises Limited, was also unavailable for comment: he heard the question, said he had nothing to do with the company, and hung up; he hasn't returned calls since. Given the Russian side's comment, it's possible that a Ukrainian official is attempting to install a "gasket." It's also worth noting another fact that confirms the introduction of front companies into the energy market: the Regulation of the UIE on the Auction for Electricity Supplies to Crimea, dated December 12, 2014, which essentially opens the door for any "Horns and Hooves"-style company to supply electricity to Crimea.
The National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities (NKREKU), represented by Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn, issues licenses in bulk at unregulated rates, without any due diligence. The rationale for such decisions is as follows: these companies purchase electricity with 100% prepayment. Now, according to the URE Regulation, companies can either pay 100% or provide guarantees from the state bank of Ukraine (!!!). And so, against the backdrop of the annexation of Crimea, the Russian invasion of Donbas, and the forced purchase of electricity from the aggressor, a wonderful scheme is emerging: shell companies will supply electricity to occupied Crimea, the Ukrainian state will pay for it, and the profits will go to an offshore shell company, which could belong to anyone.
In this regard, all the quite fair questions arise:
1. Why are the Ministry of Energy and Ukrinterenergo so urgently pushing through regulations that create favorable conditions for companies like Energomerezha and Perlisio Enterprises Limited?
2. Why is this only of interest to journalists?
Leonid Isakov, Censor
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