The IMF demands that Ukraine raise utility tariffs after the war

Ukraine will need to raise utility tariffs after the war.

This information reported according to a new memorandum from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The memorandum states that despite rate increases in 2023 and 2024, “electricity prices for households remain at about half the level paid by small businesses in Kyiv, while household gas prices cover only around 50% of costs based on market gas prices.”

Therefore, the IMF urges Ukraine to develop a plan to raise utility tariffs to a cost-recovery level, while taking social factors into account.

The IMF also calls for a review of housing and utility subsidies “to improve the efficiency and targeting of support,” and for the development of a “clear definition of vulnerable households in need of assistance.”

Previously, Oleksiy Kucherenko, First Deputy Chair of the Ukrainian Parliamentary Committee on Energy and Housing Services, warned that after the war, Ukrainians could start losing their apartments over unpaid utility debts.