solidarity UTILITY partnerships with Ukraine

The cooperation between German and Ukrainian utilities takes the form of ‘classic’ utility partnerships, which already existed before the Russian war of aggression, and ‘solidarity utility partnerships’, which have been in place since February 2022.

Like a traditional utility partnership, a solidarity utility partnership is a collaboration between one or more German municipal water companies and one or more Ukrainian water operators.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian water and wastewater supply has been severely damaged as a result of Russian attacks. According to the World Bank’s Fourth Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment, the damage to infrastructure in this sector is estimated at around USD 4.6 billion and the economic losses at around USD 12.7 billion (as of December 2024). Supplies can often only be maintained in emergency mode, especially near the front line. Millions of Ukrainians suffer from interrupted or contaminated water supplies and inadequate wastewater treatment. Reconstruction needs for the period 2025 to 2035 are estimated at around 11.3 billion US dollars (as of December 2024).    

Solidarity utility partnerships therefore focus on procuring the necessary technical equipment and expertise to support Ukraine in restoring critical infrastructure. Even though experts from German operators are currently unable to travel to Ukraine, working visits by Ukrainian partners to Germany are a possible component of the partnership.