The presence of a majority of independent members on the supervisory board of NEC "Ukrenergo," who are reputable professionals, should be crucial for the company to emerge from technical default, maintain corporate governance according to European standards, and ensure independence from political influence, believes former chairman of "Ukrenergo," Volodymyr Kudrytskyi.
"All these individuals are highly qualified professionals with reputations in the European Union that they certainly will not jeopardize. For 'Ukrenergo,' having a majority of truly independent members on the supervisory board is a guarantee of professional management, adherence to OECD corporate governance standards, and the company's independence from political influence," – wrote him on Facebook on Wednesday.
Kudrytskyi emphasized that this would signal to creditors and investors that the company has a "healthy" corporate climate, which is essential for its successful exit from technical default, as it will unlock financing from international financial institutions.
"This financing is necessary to resume the debt restructuring process for the company, which was supposed to take place in September of this year," – noted Kudrytskyi.
As reported, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, in order №1168-р dated November 26, 2024, approved four independent members to the supervisory board of NEC "Ukrenergo."
Patrick Greichen served as the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection of Germany from 2021 to 2023, Luigi de Francisci – a former top manager of TERNA and Enel, had previously been part of the supervisory board of NEC, Eppe Kofod – former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, and Jan Montell has experience as a top manager and board member of several Finnish energy companies.
"Ukrenergo" temporarily suspended payments on its debt obligations for the "green" sustainable development bonds issued in 2021, amounting to $825 million, since November 9, 2024.
"This technical decision will remain in effect until the planned debt restructuring is completed in the coming months. 'Ukrenergo,' in collaboration with the government of Ukraine, is taking all necessary measures to reach an agreement with bondholders in the near future," – stated in his message.