INSTITUTIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT FOR PUBLIC ENERGY EFFICIENCY POLICY AS A FACTOR IN STRENGTHENING ENERGY SECURITY WITHIN UKRAINE’S POST-WAR RECOVERY FRAMEWORK

Abstract

The article substantiates the theoretical and applied foundations of institutional and organizational support for public energy efficiency policy as a factor in strengthening energy security within Ukraine’s post-war recovery framework. The relevance of the study is determined by the need to combine reconstruction objectives with reducing energy dependence, strengthening the resilience of critical and social infrastructure, decreasing public expenditure, decarbonizing the economy, and fulfilling European integration commitments. It is demonstrated that, amid large-scale destruction, energy efficiency should be regarded not only as a means of conserving resources but also as an instrument for ensuring reliable energy supply and enhancing the resilience of territorial communities. Implementing this approach requires the introduction of modern technologies, the mobilization of financial resources, and the establishment of a coordinated system of institutions, powers, procedures, and information flows. The content of institutional and organizational support for public energy efficiency policy is further specified. It is proposed that such support be understood as an ordered system of actors, competencies, rules, procedures, resource allocation channels, and digital interconnections covering the entire governance cycle – from the formulation of strategic objectives to the monitoring of results and the adjustment of government interventions. The institutional configuration of the policy is systematized across the strategic, central executive, financial and programmatic, regional, local, and partnership levels. It is established that, despite the existence of a basic regulatory and institutional framework, policy implementation remains insufficiently coordinated, thereby limiting its contribution to strengthening energy security. Strategic-to-project, coordination, information and digital, and financial gaps are identified as major barriers to transforming government-defined objectives into well-prepared, adequately funded, and effective projects. These gaps are primarily manifested in the disconnection between strategic and budgetary planning, the fragmentation of managerial responsibility, territorial disparities in the institutional capacity of communities, fragmented funding sources, and the incompatibility of information systems. The study presents the concept of an integrated multilevel model of institutional and organizational support for public energy efficiency policy. The model combines strategic, coordination, sectoral, territorial, partnership and financial, and information and analytical components within a unified governance cycle. The proposed model enables public policy objectives to be translated into measurable programme tasks, supports the formation of a coordinated project portfolio, facilitates the combination of different funding sources, and ensures that monitoring results are used to adjust managerial decisions. Project prioritization should account not only for financial payback but also for energy savings, resilience to security threats, social significance, and the capacity to ensure the continuity of essential services. A key advantage of the model is the functional integration of existing institutions rather than the mechanical establishment of new ones. The practical implementation of the proposed provisions will contribute to the coordination of public investment, territorially balanced access to support, the scaling-up of private and international financing, greater resilience of energy infrastructure, and the transformation of post-war reconstruction into the structural energy-efficient modernization of Ukraine.