EU and Germany to help Ukraine fix and rebuild energy infrastructure

Germany and the EU have promised to help Ukraine repair and rebuild its energy infrastructure, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen assured the Ukrainian leader in Berlin on Tuesday.

Ukraine has lost half of its electricity-generating capacity due to Russian attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said 9 gigawatts of capacity have already been destroyed in missile and drone attacks. The energy consumption last winter was around 18 gigawatts.

Scholz said the focus would be on renewable energy and hydrogen potential and added that efforts would be made to “rebuild a future member state of the EU”.

Von der Leyen pledged €1.9 billion in aid for Kyiv, some of which has been generated from interest derived from Russian assets the West froze.

Zelenskyy spoke in the German Bundestag for the first time on Tuesday. Politicians from Alternative for Germany (AfD) and Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance were noticeably absent. Both parties demand an end to weapons deliveries in Ukraine.