World Bank rejects credit to Ukraine to complete Dnistrovska power plant

January17200817:32

Jan. 17, the World Bank turned down a request by Ukraine for a $280 million credit to complete the first stage of the Dnistrovska hydro-accumulating power plant in the Chernivtsy Oblast, ZIK was told at the National Environmental Center of Ukraine. NECU has repeatedly blown the whistle to the WB on a range of environmental, social and economic risks related to the plant construction.

The information about WB refusal is available at the bank’s Monthly Operational Resume site (Europe and Central Asia regions) for January 2008.

According to NECU, for over 20 years residents in areas adjacent to the plant site have been suffering from lack and low quality of potable water that disappeared from wells as soon the plant’s drainage system was built.

The NECU experts have hailed the WB decision to deny funding for the plant. They believe the WB and other international finance organizations should earmark their funding to develop energy-saving technologies and such environmentally safe energy sectors as hydro power engineering.

"Dnistrovska PP contractors are desperately looking for money elsewhere. We hope the WB refusal will be a good signal to potential investors to sidestep the project," NECU representative Iryna Holovko said.

Comment by ZIK

Fuel and Energy Minister Yury Prodan has earlier declared that the power plant’s first generator is to be launched in December of 2008. Under the project, seven generators totaling in power to 2,268 MW in the turbine mode and 2,947MW in the pumping mode are to be installed. The plant will cost Hr 5,845 million to build. The plant will have generators exceeding twice the capacity of existing generators.