Presidential decree #737/2023 of November 7, 2023 

Decision-maker: the President of Ukraine 

Status: in effect since November 7, 2023 

Who is affected: the Cabinet of Ministers, the Ministry of Economics, the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities, oblast and Kyiv City military administrations, and the Ministry of Defense 

Summary: enacts the decision by the National Security and Defense Council giving orders to a number of government bodies. 

  • to the Cabinet of Ministers: 
    • to repay the arrears of government bodies to suppliers for consumed electricity 
    • to reconstruct thermal energy pipelines 
    • to resolve the issue of coal supply to Ukraine from the Caspian region 
    • to prepare draft bills on stimulating the production of thermal energy produced from alternative types of fuel and introducing criminal liability for unauthorized gas withdrawal 
    • to ensure the approval of action plans for supporting the thermal modernization of buildings and energy modernization of enterprises 
  • to the Ministry of Energy: 
    • to prepare amendments to the legislation concerning the transfer of funds from the current special electricity account 
    • to work on the issue of reducing the volumes of natural gas consumption by thermal power stations and thermal power plants 
    • to the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities: 
    • to ensure the adjustment of marginal prices in the Day-Ahead-Market, intraday, and balance energy market of Ukraine in line with the indicators of marginal electricity prices 
    • to work on creating new highly maneuverable capacities in the auxiliary services market by reconstructing gas piston and gas turbine units of thermal power plants 
  • to the oblast and Kyiv City military administrations:  
  • to determine the potential for increasing the use of alternative types of fuel, approve the list of critical infrastructure objects, and ensure their security. 

What is right: critical infrastructure will be more ready to withstand Russian aggression during winter. 

What is wrong: 

  • the President has only powers defined in the Constitution, and the Constitution does not grant him the authority to give instructions to the executive bodies 
  • the decree violates the balance of the power