Ukraine: World Bank Supports Improvement Of Heat Supply
WASHINGTON, March 22, 2001 -- The World Bank today approved a US$28 million loan for a Sevastopol Heat Supply Improvement Project in Ukraine . The objective of this project is to increase the efficiency of the heating system in this Ukrainian city through the introduction of decentralized gas-fired mini-boilers.
Heating and hot water services in Sevastopol are currently constrained and very low. For example, during the 1996/97 heating season, the average room temperature was approximately 13?, and hot water was available only one day per week during the heating season which was restricted to only two and a half months due to the limited availability of fuel and the poor condition of the existing district heating system. This project will address those problems by replacing 40 percent of Sevastopol's present district heating load with decentralized, gas-fired mini boilers over approximately a 4 ?-year period.
The project will also build institutional capacity by supporting the creation of a new heating enterprise-Sevteploservis-that will implement an improved heating service in Sevastopol on a commercial basis.
The Sevastopol Heat Supply Improvement Project includes the following components:
»Sevastopol Heat Supply Improvement Program . This component will finance the supply and installation of 1,018 decentralized, gas-fired boiler plants including auxiliary equipment and tools for their maintenance.
» Institutional Support Program. This component includes technical assistance for financial management, implementation support, training, equipment, and software for the new heating enterprise Sevteploservis as well as a heat tariff study and social assistance support for the Sevastopol City State Administration .
This project has a maturity of 20 years, including a 5-year grace period. Ukraine joined the World Bank in 1992, since then, commitments to the country total approximately US$3 billion for 17 operations.
