Raising the awareness of citizens on energy issues was one of the main goals for the INOGATE Project in the past years. This is an important aspect as citizens who can grasp basic concepts of energy and its complexity as an issue can also understand why energy sector reforms are necessary processes and what are the potential benefits for the country.

With this aim in mind, the INOGATE communication team created a series of 7 stories, targeting citizens both in the EU and in the Partner Countries, without a background on energy issues. The stories illustrate the successful areas of interventions undertook by INOGATE in crucial areas.

The stories published can be accessed as following: 

1.       Saving energy at home - a ‘how to’ centre for sustainable energy

Through greater awareness of energy efficiency, consumers are empowered to make informed choices to save themselves money and help increase their country’s energy security.

2.       Phasing out subsides in energy tarrifs: why it’s necessary

Properly set tariffs are essential as they ensure the quality of energy supply and fund future investments in energy which in turn are necessary to meet the growing energy demands of a country. However, a tariff must be cost-reflective while also protecting socially vulnerable groups.

3.       Saving on your energy bills by making better buying choices

Consumers have more information and new choices to reduce energy consumption in their households by considering energy labelling when buying energy efficient appliances and lighting and obtaining energy passports before making decisions to rent or buy homes.

4.       Investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency

Investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency is a smart way of providing affordable, clean and reliable energy to citizens. In order to facilitate and attract investments, appropriate legislation, financing schemes and other support mechanisms must be in place.

5.       Energy statistics you can trust

Reliable energy data is the foundation for sound decision-making. Every country needs to know how its consumers are using energy, both to develop better policy and to create a more enabling environment for the energy sector. Trusted, accurate statistics answer questions in a reliable way.

6.       An end to electricity supply frustrations

Electrical appliances can be destroyed due to power surges or frequent outages. Consumers sometimes spend endless hours on hold before speaking to a power company representative. This poor quality of service leaves consumers feeling frustrated and dissatisfied, but now new regulations are protecting consumers’ rights.

7.       Turning waste into energy

Countries all over the world are addressing their landfill problems by recycling their garbage and producing energy from waste to heat their homes and public buildings. Producing energy from collected landfill gas is one of best ways to reduce negative impacts of existing landfills on the environment and people living near it.

Round table "The distribution of natural gas. Problems and paths to their solution" took place on 7 April 2016 at the Hotel Kiev. The meeting was opened by Thomas Frellesen, Deputy EU Ambassador to the Ukraine and Oleksandr Dombrovskyi, Acting Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee and Member of the Expert Council on the Development of the Gas Industry and Market in Ukraine. Dmytro Vovk, Chairman of the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities discussed regulatory practice for operators of gas distribution networks; and Michael Bno-Ayriyan, Director of Strategic Planning and European Integration at the Ministry of Energy talked about the management of gas distribution networks from the standpoint of the Ministry of Energy. 

Discussion also covered the European experience in the EU and the Energy Community, comparisons of European approaches to gas distribution tariffs and gas losses, and comparison of Ukrainian and European gas distribution operating performance indicators and lessons learnt for the improvement of operation and regulation. Priority steps towards modernisation of the gas network by 2018 and the problems faced by European companies in the implementation and investment in gas distribution in Ukraine made up the final session of meeting, closing with a discussion of the prospects of implementation of the RAB tariff system of gas distribution in Ukraine. Participants included representatives of regulators, gas network operators and international agencies.

The EU-funded programme INOGATE held its third Energy Policy Talk on 22 March at the Hotel “Ukraina”, bringing together major players in the energy field to discuss governance solutions for supporting energy efficiency (EE) in Ukraine.  

Before specific EE plans are initiated it is necessary to define responsibilities in the execution, monitoring and particularly, in the leadership and coordination of the process of applying EE measures. This implies changes, both in the way of doing business and in consumption. These structural changes also affect the behaviour and interaction of end-users with technologies which touch people’s everyday lives. The broad scope of EE that deals with energy producers, including transport, consumers in different areas (e.g. building, industry), requires effective organisation to develop functioning EE market. Such responsibilities naturally fall on the shoulders of the ministries of the central government. How these responsibilities will be arranged internally among the different ministries and agencies remains a pivotal task. As the EU is leading the development of EE in the world, it is sharing its experience with Ukraine – a member of the Energy Community Treaty.

Discussions at this Energy Policy Talk focused on the main provisions of the Energy Efficiency Directive to be implemented in Ukraine, such as identification of clear responsibilities and functions in the process; what steps should be taken by the government to coordinate among the different players to guarantee aligned governance for EE.

This Energy Policy Talk considered these key topics and sought to identify those responsible for each aspect of energy efficiency implementation. The main arguments covered identification of financial resources and financial instruments; the role of the public sector in renovating public buildings, but also as a catalyst in purchasing energy efficiency products and services; where and how to place obligations for achieving EE; the need for accurate metering and billing to create energy savings incentives; opening the market for energy audits and management by increasing the quality and quantity of personnel through training and a broader set of training service providers; who should be the main body responsible for energy efficient district heating and cooling; and raising awareness of EE investment and information among consumers.

The conference conclusions and recommendations, as well as the presentations of the speakers will be available at the following link on 23 March 2016:  http://www.inogate.org/activities/699        

An INOGATE workshop is helping the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation (GOGC) to develop its capabilities in assessing unpiggable pipelines. The workshop brought together senior gas and standardization experts to discuss essential aspects of gas pipeline management. Among the major topics are the application of EU standards to health and safety, problems of implementation and the UK influence in developing EU standards for gas transmission.

A current challenge faced by the gas sector of Georgia is the large-scale rehabilitation and modernisation of its gas transportation network. A significant part of this network was built during the 1960s to 1980s and is now subject to serious corrosion. As gas pipes age and corrode, the need to inspect them becomes increasingly urgent.  Periodically assessing and maintaining the condition of pipelines is essential to ensure both pipeline integrity and public safety. 

The inspection and assessment of gas pipelines usually have high operational costs: identifying locations of leaks, measuring and carrying out bell-hole excavations for pipe surface inspection, etc. Crucially, during certain inspections, the gas supply must be interrupted to avoid incidents. An effective and optimal system of inspection and assessment can allow for timely and cost effective repairs, prevent further damage and reduce risk to the population. Identifying areas of high failure of the gas pipelines affected by corrosion has been particularly challenging in Georgia, particularly for old pipelines where inline inspection methods such as pigging are not possible and therefore require assessment using external surveys (“unpiggable” pipelines). It is estimated that about 1900 km of gas pipelines in Georgia currently belong to this category. The remaining pipelines are relatively recent and can be maintained through inline inspection (pigging).

For more information about this workshop please see the link

In anticipation of Georgia’s entry into the Energy Community, a first Energy Policy Talk in Georgia, was opened by the Deputy Minister of Energy, Mrs. Mariam Valishvili and the Ambassador of the European Union to Georgia Mr Janos Herman and featured international speakers Mr Kopač Janez, Director of the Energy Community Secretariat, Prof Vidmantas Jankauskas of Vilnius Technical University and Mr Anders Kristensen, Chief Policy Adviser from the Danish Energy Agency/Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry, Ukraine. National speakers included Mr. Nugzar Beridze, Director of Electricity and Mr Givi Sanikidze, Director of Tariff and Economic Analysis, both from the Georgian National Energy and Water Regulatory Commission.

The EU-funded INOGATE Energy Policy Talk fuelled discussion on how to improve Georgia’s electricity value chain – from production to consumption – and gave parliamentarians, ministers, representatives of IFIs and donor organisations, the Regulator (GNERC) and relevant energy organisations and NGOs the opportunity to exchange views on Georgia’s energy market. The moderated discussion considered electrical power supply (energy and system losses, capacity in generation, distribution and transmission) and grid support services (ancillary services, generator imbalance and dispatch); financial issues such as market price response and the reliability and resilience of electrical services from a security point of view.

This Energy Policy Talk took the form of a short theme paper addressed a series of related energy market issues: the present situation of the energy market in Georgia, the improvements that need to be made to TSOs/DSOs, market tariffs, demand and load reduction and consumer behaviour; how joining the Energy Community will help Georgia and what are the challenges/obstacles; the involvement of civil society organisations (CSOs) and the private sector; and lessons learned from other countries (Ukraine, Moldova and the EU).