OREANDA-NEWS. May 04, 2011. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is partnering with the city of Vinnitsa to pioneer a project aimed at stimulating energy-efficient modernization of the residential buildings in central Ukraine, which will help reduce energy waste and greenhouse-gas emissions.

As the second-largest end-user of energy in Ukraine after manufacturing, the residential housing sector has great energy savings potential. IFC’s Ukraine Residential Energy Efficiency Advisory Project will help Vinnitsa, a city of about 400,000 people, set up a specialized knowledge-sharing center to work with representatives of homeowner associations on technical, financial and legal issues.

“The agreement with IFC marks a milestone for Vinnitsa as we are striving to build a modern and energy-efficient municipal housing sector for our people,” said Volodymyr Groisman, Mayor of Vinnitsa.

Elena Voloshina, IFC’s Head of Operations in Ukraine, said: “Addressing climate change and supporting energy-efficient modernization is our regional priority and a priority in Ukraine. The Vinnitsa city administration already has some experience in implementing energy efficiency projects and we are pleased to work jointly and launch the pilot in the residential sector. We hope it will improve people’s everyday lives and result in improved access to finance for residents of the multi-storied buildings.”  

To help Ukraine realize its energy efficiency potential in the residential sector, IFC will work with banks to encourage them to finance investment in the energy-efficient renovation of residential buildings. IFC also will encourage banks to work with homeowner associations and management companies to help them find economically attractive solutions, and to work with the Ukrainian legislature to improve regulation related to this market.

IFC’s Ukraine Residential Energy Efficiency Project was launched in 2010 and is being implemented in partnership with the Swiss Confederation.