On 8 December, the Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine met with the Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Ukraine, Luboš Veselý, who has held his post since this autumn. Deputy Ministers Andriy Teliupa and Dariia Marchak also took part in the meeting, while the foreign side was represented by officials of the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ukraine.
The participants discussed possible financial instruments to encourage Czech investors in Ukraine, which could be made available through cooperation under an intergovernmental agreement mechanism. Czech companies are already active in Ukraine’s energy sector and are interested in participating in various projects, including nuclear energy, gas and oil extraction. Among the promising areas is privatization, including partial privatization.
“Czechia has successful experience managing energy assets in which the state remains the owner but attracts private capital. Czech partners are ready to provide Ukraine with technical expertise on this matter. In addition, we expect a visit from a Czech government delegation next year. We hope to deepen cooperation, which is already practical and substantial,” noted Oleksii Sobolev.
Representatives of major Czech businesses will also visit Ukraine. In particular, a visit to the Dnipropetrovsk region, which is supported by Czechia, is being planned.
The parties also discussed the possibility of launching a mechanism for direct financing of reconstruction projects in Ukraine through the Czech Development Bank (NRB). The creation of a tool similar to the one that already exists with Poland’s BGK is being considered.
Another important topic discussed during the meeting was industrial recovery. Czech manufacturers have strong expertise in hydropower and mechanical engineering and are ready to supply necessary equipment for repairing Ukrainian hydropower plants and thermal power stations. They also discussed the format of an “Industrial Ramstein” – a cooperation model that would not only provide equipment to Ukrainian enterprises but also create joint production chains.
One of the next steps will be Ukraine’s participation in the MSV industrial exhibition in Brno, which may result in contracts in this sector. MSV is an annual technology exhibition for mechanical engineering in Central Europe. It showcases all key sectors of mechanical engineering and electrical engineering, with a primary focus on manufacturing and production digitalization. The exhibition also includes a business program featuring specialized conferences, seminars and workshops on current technical, commercial and economic topics.
