More than 1.25 billion hryvnia that Kyiv allocated to the State Agency for Restoration for a reserve heating system spent several months moving between state treasury accounts instead of being used, according to Oleksandr Serhiienko, director of the Institute of the City analytical center, writing in Dzerkalo Tyzhnia.
Serhiienko wrote that the funds were meant to let the Restoration Agency buy equipment and build a backup heat supply system for the capital. The agency asked the Ministry of Finance and the State Treasury Service for clarification on transferring the money from Kyiv's budget to the state budget, a mechanism allowed by law but complicated in practice, he said.
Treasury and Finance Ministry Responses
According to Serhiienko, the Treasury concluded the agency could not accept Kyiv's money, while the Finance Ministry said there was no legal basis to authorize the recipient of budget funds to manage state budget funds. As a result, the 1.25 billion hryvnia sat in treasury accounts for months while Mayor Vitali Klitschko, Petro Panteleyev and Kyiv City Council deputies expected it to fund the heating system, Serhiienko said.
Funding Gap Remains
Serhiienko said the Resilience Plan approved earlier by the National Security and Defense Council costs more than Kyiv can afford alone. The city has raised 11.1 billion hryvnia, alongside a preliminary agreement with Oschadbank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for 5.2 billion hryvnia in loans. Kyivteploenergo holds 1.7 billion hryvnia of its own, and Panteleyev reported a subvention of 1.3 billion hryvnia. On July 14, Kyiv City Council voted to return the 1.25 billion hryvnia to the city budget.
