Sergii Koretskyi Photographer: Andrew Kravchenko/Bloomberg Photo by Andrew Kravchenko /Bloomberg

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(Bloomberg) — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is turning to a technocratic energy executive with no cabinet experience or political ties as his prime minister to prepare Ukraine to survive another winter of war.

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Sergii Koretskyi, 48, spent most of his nearly 30-year career working in the private sector, mainly for energy companies. He joined the public sector in 2022, the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when he became chief executive officer of Ukrnafta, the country’s largest oil producer. 

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His primary challenge will be to toughen Ukraine’s power and heating network to withstand the impact of Russian missile and drone attacks intended to demoralize the population and break its will to resist Kremlin demands for territorial concessions. 

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The goal is to prevent a repeat of last winter’s extensive blackouts when Russian strikes left millions of Ukrainians in Kyiv and other major cities without heating, light or water supplies during periods of extreme cold weather. 

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his forces to step up air attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks. Zelenskyy has appealed to allies for more air-defense missiles amid signs Ukraine lacks interceptors to defend against strikes. 

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Ukraine’s parliament confirmed Koretskyi’s appointment to head the new government on Thursday in a debate largely overshadowed by controversy over Zelenskyy’s ouster of Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister. Fedorov’s removal sparked protests in Kyiv and across the country.

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“The fact that Koretskyi is a novice in politics is actually an advantage for him at this stage,” said Oleksiy Haran, a political science professor at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. “He remains politically neutral, and the fact that he is unlikely to play political games is very important for the president.”

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The new premier has a track record as a successful crisis manager in business.

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Koretskyi took charge of Ukrnafta after the government, which already owned a 51% share, nationalized a more than 40% stake held by firms linked to Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky. 

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The company’s operations had long been disrupted by corporate disputes, and its assets in many parts of the country were in poor condition following repeated Russian airstrikes. Within two years, Koretskyi had turned Ukrnafta into a highly profitable enterprise.

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“Ukrnafta reported net income of about $1 billion” in 2023-2024, said Denys Sakva, an energy analyst at Kyiv-based investment bank Dragon Capital. “It was only marginally profitable or outright loss making before the full-scale war.”

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The company hasn’t disclosed details of its financial performance during wartime, making it difficult for analysts to study how the turnaround was achieved. 

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In May last year, Koretskyi took charge of NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy, the country’s largest state-run energy company. Introducing Koretskyi as the new CEO, the then Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal set five key priorities including ensuring sufficient gas reserves, restoring infrastructure damaged by Russian attacks and preparing for the winter heating season.