They sold electricity honestly, hid the money quietly: electricity-related abuses worth hundreds of millions exposed in Ukraine

April 23, 2026 the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Kravchenko reported the uncovering of a scheme to embezzle funds from PJSC NEC “Ukrenergo”, which, according to the investigation, operated during 2022–2024. The case concerns manipulations in the electricity market that caused the state-owned company losses of over 447 million hryvnias.

According to the investigation, the organizer was the founder and de facto controller of private electricity supply companies. He, the prosecution claims, involved four more market participants and created a network of controlled entities through which electricity was supplied to end consumers. The key to the scheme was the systematic understatement of forecasted consumption: “on paper” companies showed a lower need while in reality they sold substantially larger volumes.

As a result, a deficit arose between declared and actual consumption, which the state automatically covered so that consumers would not be left without power. At the same time, the money from clients for the electricity actually supplied, according to the investigation, was not returned to the state but withdrawn through controlled companies and FOPs. Debts to “Ukrenergo” were not repaid; on the contrary, they were artificially accumulated, after which firms were driven to bankruptcy and the scheme started again through new companies.

The mechanism of such “on-paper” understatement looks especially cynical: during the war, when the power system operates under constant strikes, the state effectively covered the resource shortfall, while private market participants, according to the investigation, profited from the difference and accumulated hopeless debts.

All participants in the scheme have been notified of suspicion under Part 5 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and the organizer was additionally charged under Part 3 of Article 27 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The issue of imposing preventive measures is currently being decided. Law enforcement officers are also checking other possible episodes and similar damages for 2025–2026 years.