Italy will help Ukraine restore energy facilities damaged by russian shelling and facilitate the involvement of international donors and private companies in Ukraine’s recovery. This was discussed at the “Italy Supports Made in Ukraine” business forum in Rome.
The event brought together First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yuliia Svyrydenko, Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy Antonio Tajani, Minister for Enterprises and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso, as well as representatives of Ukrainian and Italian businesses. Following the business forum, the parties exchanged a joint communiqué.
During the event, Italy reaffirmed its commitment, together with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), to provide EUR 200 million for Ukrhydroenergo, Ukraine’s major hydroelectric generating company. According to the agreement, which was signed in February 2024, the loan will be used to purchase critical equipment for the Dnipro and Seredniodniprovska HPPs, as well as to provide emergency liquidity support to Ukrhydroenergo to ensure the company’s sustainability.
‘I would like to thank Italy for the support they provide to Ukraine - from EUR 320 million in budget support, shelter for 160,000 of our citizens, to the important decision of the G7 to provide Ukraine with a USD 50 billion loan to be repaid from the proceeds of seized russian assets. In addition, Italy is an important trading partner of Ukraine - 4.4% of our total exports go to Italy. It was the Made in Italy policy that inspired us to launch our domestic analogue of this policy. This gives us confidence that we can implement ambitious business cooperation projects, strengthen our energy sector and jointly implement infrastructure projects,” Yuliia Svyrydenko said.
The Italian side stressed that it would continue to support the Government’s Made in Ukraine policy, and Italian businesses expressed interest in cooperating with Ukrainian enterprises in five key sectors of the Ukrainian economy: metallurgy and critical materials, renewable energy, defence, agro-processing and mechanical engineering.
During the event, the parties also discussed preparations for the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC-2025) to be held in Italy in 2025. The sides emphasized the need for closer cooperation with the multi-donor coordination platform, involvement of more Italian and Ukrainian companies interested in cooperation, as well as inviting representatives of civil society and local administrations.
Background information
The Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) is an annual high-level event dedicated to the rapid recovery and long-term reconstruction of Ukraine. They have been held since the beginning of russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine. They bring together leaders of partner governments, international organizations, business, and civil society representatives.
This year’s URC-2024 Recovery Conference was held in Berlin. It resulted in the signing and announcement of international agreements and assistance worth over EUR 16 billion.