Zhytomyr Municipal Energy Plan

• City: Zhytomyr, Ukraine
• Size and population development: 63,0 km2 area, 264,700 people
• Population composition: 45.9% - men, 54.1% - women
• Main functions: Zhytomyr is a green, comfortable, safe and sportive city where modern design and natural landscapes are harmoniously combined. It is the city of creative industries, entrepreneurship and organic products. The city of equal opportunities for self-realization and development
• Main industries / business: Zhytomyr has a well-developed industry. 2,955 enterprises are registered in the city, including 121 enterprises with foreign investments. The most developed industries are: food, light, woodworking and pharmaceutical industries, the IT sector is rapidly developing
• Political structure: - The city is governed by three branches of government: the Mayor, the Executive Committee, and the Deputy Corps. The main official of the territorial community is the Mayor, who is elected for a term of 5 years by residents on the basis of general, equal and direct voting by secret ballot.
• Administrative structure: the city of Zhytomyr consists of two administrative districts: Bohunskyi and Koroliovskyi, in addition, the village of Veresy is part of the Zhytomyr city territorial community.
• Website: https://zt-rada.gov.ua/

To tackle this, In 2015 the city of Zhytomyr developed a sectoral energy strategy until 2024 (Sustainable Energy Action Plan). The year 2010 was defined “base year”, as the most typical year in terms of energy consumption and the year about which the most complete statistical information on energy consumption was available.

In 2017, the Municipal Energy Plan for the period 2017-2020 was approved to implement the Sustainable Energy Action Plan.

The strategic vision of the city (the goal of the plan) is to achieve a balance between the amount of energy consumed in the city and the amount of energy produced in the city from alternative and renewable sources. The goals of the plan are defined as the following:

- introduction of the local energy policy management system – the European Energy Award;

- reduction of energy consumption by the municipal infrastructure of the city by at least 20% by 2020;

- reduction of CO2 emissions by at least 20% by 2020.

Since 2015, the City of Zhytomyr has focused intensively on energy-efficient modernization and renewal of the municipal infrastructure. These activities became more systematic and comprehensive in 2017 when the Municipal Energy Plan for the period 2017-2020 was approved. This plan defined clear actions and implementers.

Thanks to such activities, it was possible to implement several projects that ensured, among others, the following outcomes:

-  in 2019, the city of Zhytomyr switched to 100% LED lighting in the city’s outdoor lighting network, which made it possible to reduce electricity consumption by 50% (from 3.4 GWh/year in 2012 to 1.7 GWh/year in 2021);

-  modernization of the city district heating system made it possible to reduce natural gas consumption by more than 30% (from 96.8m m3/year in 2010 to 62.4m m3/year in 2021);

-  modernization of the city water supply system made it possible to reduce electricity consumption by 26.9% (from 42.0 GWh/year in 2010 to 30.7 GWh/year in 2021);

-  in general, in 2020, the city reduced energy consumption by 28.8% (by 699.024 thousand MWh);

-  in general, in 2020, the city reduced CO2 emissions by 36.1% (by 740.273 thousand tons/year).

At the end of 2020, the city approved the Municipal Energy Plan for the period 2021-2024, which is aimed at further increasing the efficiency of energy use and its replacement by renewable sources and local alternative fuels.

Among the projects that have already been implemented according to the Municipal Energy Plan for the period 2021-2024, are:

- already commissioned waste recycling plant with a capacity of 100.000 tons/year;

- already commissioned Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant with a capacity of 1.2 MW of electricity and 7.1 MW of thermal energy, which works on biomass and provides heating to one of the largest micro-districts of the city (73 multi-apartment residential buildings. It also allows replacing 6.4m m3/ year of natural gas.

The development and implementation of the Municipal Energy Plan for the period 2017-2020 were possible thanks to the fruitful partnership of the city, the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of the Swiss Confederation, and the Ukrainian office of the Covenant of Mayors East.

It was this partnership that, through the development of personnel potential and the adaptation of municipal internal rules and procedures, ensured the creation of a stable and effective local energy policy management system in the city of Zhytomyr.

Throughout the year, the city organizes and conducts information and educational campaigns dedicated to the topics of climate, energy, urban mobility, and food security:

-  Energy Days;

-  Sustainable Urban Mobility Week;

-  City Workshop (an annual urban and cultural festival, which is organized and held with the participation of local public organizations and residents);

 -  Urbanistic Interventions (temporary complete or partial blocking of streets along with car traffic restrictions, testing of new traffic management schemes, etc.);

-   Surveys and social studies, etc.

The main channel of communication has been the official website of the Zhytomyr City Council, as well as the Facebook page of the Zhytomyr City Council. In addition, other Facebook pages are actively used for communication with the residents:

-  Green city Zhytomyr

-  Department of Economic Development of the Zhytomyr City Council, etc.

The topics of implementation of local energy-efficient projects are systematically covered by local TV channels and online publications.

In 2020, the city developed a communication concept dedicated to the topic of sustainable energy development and climate as part of the Plan.

To implement the investment measures of the Zhytomyr Municipal Energy Plan for 2017-2020, €128m was needed (an average of €32m per year). At the same time, the city budget possibilities for financing all capital expenditures per year amounted to €13.5m. With these existing local budget restrictions, the city addressed international partners for financial and technical assistance:

-World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Clean Technology Fund);

-European Bank for Reconstruction and Development;

-German State Development Bank KfW;

-State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of the Swiss Confederation;

-Fund of Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership E5P;

-Nordic Environmental Finance Corporation NEFCO;

-German Agency for International Cooperation and Development GIZ;

-GEF;

-UNDP;

-Centre for International Cooperation and Development CMSR (Slovenia).

The city managed to attract €113.4m from international partners for the implementation of investment projects provided for in the Municipal Energy Plan of the city of Zhytomyr for 2017-2020, including €78.5m of credit funds and €34.9m of grant funds.

In addition, the city started looking for private investors to implement projects in the field of renewable and alternative energy.

One of the main tasks of the Municipal Energy Plan of the City of Zhytomyr for 2017-2020 was creating a sustainable local energy policy interdisciplinary management system.

In 2019, the city of Zhytomyr received the European Energy Award certificate based on the results of an international audit

Since 2020, on the initiative of the Ukrainian representative office of the Covenant of Mayors East, a competition has been held in Ukraine to determine the best energy manager. During 2020-2022, the constant winner of this competition is one of the energy managers of the city of Zhytomyr. For this yearly competition, Zhytomyr participants are different employees. They are all engaged in developing and implementing the local energy policy.

The implementation of investment measures in Zhytomyr municipal infrastructure, determined by the Municipal Energy Plan for 2017-2020, allowed to:

- reduce energy consumption by 28.8% (by 699.024 thou MWh/year);

- reduce CO2 emissions (740.273 thou tons/year).

The biggest challenges for project implementation within the Zhytomyr Municipal Energy Plan for 2017-2020 were delays and obstacles in obtaining permits and approvals from the central executive authorities (the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine and the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development).

A relevant project in the renewable energy sector (10.0 MW land-based solar power plant) failed implementation because the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine refused to provide the city with the appropriate approval.

At the stage of project implementation, the biggest challenge is Ukrainian procurement regulations, according to which price is the main criterion for evaluating tender offers. But since the principal aspect for projects in the field of energy efficiency is the accumulated benefits during the project's life cycle, the city uses the respective international procurement regulations for the projects financed by international financial organizations.

• https://zt-rada.gov.ua/?pages=9629
• https://www.minregion.gov.ua/press/news/zhitomir-otrimav-yevropeysku-energetichnu-vidznaku/
• https://zt-rada.gov.ua/?pages=6913
• https://zt-rada.gov.ua/?pages=8864
• https://www.ukrinform.ua/rubric-yakisne-zhyttia/3353762-u-zitomiri-pobuduvali-tec-so-pracue-na-vidhodah-derevoobrobki.html

Aksinia Sinko
Project Manager
Public Utility "City Development Agency" of the Zhytomyr City Council
aksinialife@gmail.com
+380985126497