Investment in green recovery: Ukraine and NEFCO sign a memorandum of cooperation at COP31

The Ministry of Economy and Environment of Ukraine and the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which opens up new avenues for attracting climate finance and implementing the country’s green recovery projects. The signing of the document was announced on 13 November at the Ukrainian pavilion at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Turkey.

The agreement lays the foundations for practical cooperation under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and voluntary carbon markets. It is designed to align Ukraine’s climate targets with the investment resources and technological expertise of Northern European countries.

Priority areas for investment and the Northern Climate Partnership

The collaboration will be implemented with the support of the ‘Nordic Climate Partnership’ (Nordic Climate Partnership) — a pilot initiative coordinated by NEFCO, aimed at financing high-quality projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that meet strict integrity standards.

The key sectors towards which future investment and technical assistance will be directed include:

• Energy and heating: modernisation of district heating systems, development of renewable energy and production of biomethane;
• Environmental infrastructure: the introduction of modern waste management systems and measures to reduce methane emissions;
• Industry and agribusiness: decarbonisation of production processes and the introduction of energy-efficient technologies.

As noted by Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi, Deputy Minister of Economy and Environment of Ukraine, the government had already approved the necessary regulatory framework in 2026 for the implementation of the mechanisms set out in Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, and the new partnership with NEFCO will enable these legislative opportunities to be translated into the actual modernisation of enterprises.

Preparation of project portfolios and coordination of work

NEFCO’s Executive Director, Trond Moe, emphasised that the corporation has been working with Ukraine for over 20 years and has already launched more than 100 new environmental projects since the start of the full-scale invasion. The new memorandum expands this collaboration, helping Ukrainian project developers to find international partners and build project portfolios that are attractive to investors and demonstrate verified emissions reductions.

On the Ukrainian side, the implementation of the memorandum will be coordinated by the Green Transition Office — an independent consultative and advisory body attached to the Ministry of Economy and the Environment. The next step for the parties will be to select priority projects for joint launch and to identify sources of funding for them.

For reference: The Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) is an international financial organisation established by five Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) to accelerate the implementation of green solutions and attract public and private environmental investment.

Read more news on GreenPost.