Zelenskyy announces personnel changes in the energy sector after inspections

Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced personnel changes in the energy sector. Archive photo: NikVesti

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had held a meeting with Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko on further steps to clean up and update the management system of the energy sector and related structures.

Following the meeting, the President announced a number of personnel decisions.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed the government to submit to the Verkhovna Rada an urgent draft law that would renew the composition of the National Commission for Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities.

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The leadership of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate and the State Energy Supervision Inspectorate will also be changed. In addition, the Prime Minister is to submit a motion to the Parliament to appoint a new head of the State Property Fund.

The President added that, together with law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies, it is necessary to update the Asset Recovery and Management Agency and complete the competition for its head by the end of the year.

Separately, Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed the need to conduct an audit as soon as possible and prepare for the sale of assets and stakes in companies owned by Russian owners or collaborators who fled to Russia.

«Midas». Large-scale corruption in the energy sector

On the morning of 10 November, it became known that NABU detectives were conducting a search at the home of Tymur Mindich, a businessman and co-owner of the Kvartal 95 Studio. At the same time, as UP pointed out, Tymur Mindich left the territory of Ukraine on the same day — a few hours before the start of the investigation. According to the source, he «fled the country at night».

Later, it was reported that the NABU and the SAPO were conducting a large-scale operation to expose corruption in the energy sector. The bureau said the investigation lasted 15 months. More than 70 searches were conducted as part of the case, and investigators collected more than 1,000 hours of audio recordings. As part of the operation, they searched the offices of former Energy Minister and Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko and «Energoatom».

On the same day, the NABU and the SAPO published part of the audio recordings of conversations between the persons involved in the corruption scheme. The tapes released by the Bureau include officials with call signs «Tenor», «Rocket», «Carlson». According to «RBK-Ukraine», the tapes feature:

• Ihor Myroniuk — former advisor to the Minister of Energy (Rocket);
• Dmytro Basov — Executive Director for Physical Protection and Security of «Energoatom», former employee of the Prosecutor General's Office (Tenor);
• Tymur Mindich — businessman, head of the organisation (Carlson);
• Herman Halushchenko, former Minister of Energy, now Minister of Justice (Professor).

It also became known that the defendants were involved in the legalisation of illegally obtained funds in an office in the centre of Kyiv. It belongs to the family of MP Andrii Derkach, who is now a politician in Russia.

In the published fourth part of the investigation, the NABU found that participants in the energy sector corruption scheme transferred funds to the former Deputy Prime Minister, who was referred to in the documents and materials of the investigation as Che Guevara. Later it became known that it was former Minister of National Unity Oleksii Chernyshov. He was notified of being suspected of illicit enrichment.

Later, «Schemes» (Radio Liberty) named the names of all those who had been notified of suspicion by NABU as part of a large-scale corruption scheme in the energy sector. Among them was not the name of Herman Halushchenko. However, only on 12 November did it become known that Halushchenko had been removed from office following an investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau into corruption schemes at NNEGC «Energoatom».

Commenting on the situation, «Energoatom» stated that the large-scale corruption in the energy sector recently exposed by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine did not affect the stability of its operations.

Subsequently, the HACC sent Dmytro Basov, a defendant in the «Midas» case, to custody with the possibility of bail of UAH 40 million.

Subsequently, Zelenskyy dismissed Ministers Halushchenko and Hrynchuk from the NSDC. The government also launched an audit of state-owned companies, particularly in the energy sector. The audits will focus on performance and procurement transparency.