Maxim Timchenko is building Europe’s largest wind farm — in a war zone. Indeed, according to Timchenko, the chief executive of Dtek, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, “it’s probably the first time in history a wind farm was built during a war”.
Dtek completed the first €200 million phase of the Tyligulska wind project, which is capable of generating 114 megawatts from 19 huge turbines, last May. In December, it signed a memorandum of understanding with Vestas, the Danish wind turbine maker, to develop the second phase of the project in southern Ukraine, adding a further 64 turbines at a cost of €450 million. It is hoped that construction will begin this year. Once complete, the wind farm will be capable of generating 1.7 terawatt hours of clean electricity annually, enough to power 900,000 homes.
Completing the project, which was commissioned before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, involved a lot of challenges. Dtek had to build a bomb shelter on the site and had to develop a “security protocol” even before starting construction. For security reasons, he says, “contractors couldn’t send people to do the work. So we had to learn how to do it by ourselves. And, of course, it was not easy to find contractors like crane suppliers and logistics companies.”
As well as adding much-needed generation capacity in southern Ukraine with the construction of Tyligulska, Dtek has focused on “keeping the lights on” in the war-afflicted country. Russia initially attacked the nation’s transmission network, but then switched tactics to target power generation and, in particular, turbines, boilers and generators.
“We have one power station just ten kilometres from the front line. It is under daily shelling every single day. People come to work knowing that they will be attacked by Russia and they still come, understanding how important this power station is for the region where they live.
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“I am proud that I’m Ukrainian and that our people demonstrate to the whole world such determination. Every day I can give you examples of heroes.”
Dtek, which before the war provided almost 25 per cent of Ukraine’s power, lost about 50 per cent of its capacity at one point, but the company spent much of last summer repairing damage to the network, helped by Ukraine’s improved air defences.
But DTEK facilities have been attacked 150 times since the start of the year and earlier this week a Russian attack injured nine power engineers at a power station.
On the second anniversary of Russia’s attack, Timchenko has warned that Ukraine’s energy system is under renewed threat and urged urged the US and allies to urgently unlock military aid to Ukraine to protect not only the country’s territory but also the energy system on which millions of people and businesses depend.
“Despite early successes against Russia this winter, today we face renewed danger. DTEK is doing everything it can to protect assets, however the ultimate defence lies in robust air-defence systems,” he said.
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He also urged Ukraine’s allies to invest in the country’s economy, reiterating a plea that he made earlier in the year at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “Defending Ukraine’s economy is critical to winning this war and getting more capital into the hands of the private sector is one of the most important ways to do that. We have the companies, we have shown we can operate, invest and build major projects despite the war. Now we need the capital so we can build dozens of Tyligulskas.”
Timchenko had been in Davos to talk to international investors and potential partners. “We need to attract private companies and private capital. We need help,” he told The Times in January on the fringes of the forum.
“My message to suppliers of equipment: we are ready to buy your turbines, or your transformers, we are ready to buy on commercial terms. But it is impossible today for the private sector to raise any capital without some kind of participation of governments or export credit agencies or international financial institutions. Please work with your government, so your government can help us with funding, issue guarantees and work with the banks. Let’s build together, let’s share the risk together. Let’s raise financing together.”
