How Hitachi Energy, Statron, Brugg Rohrsystem and R&S International Holding are contributing to Ukraine’s energy resilience — and what their selection reveals about Switzerland’s approach to reconstruction.

Lighthouse Legal Media | Swiss–Ukrainian Reconstruction Series | Part I: Energy

Ukraine’s reconstruction is increasingly becoming a question not only of how much international funding can be mobilised, but also of how that funding can be translated into operational infrastructure, reliable services and sustainable partnerships with private companies.

Switzerland’s latest selection of reconstruction projects offers a practical example of this approach.

On 2 October 2026, the Swiss Federal Council announced the selection of eight projects involving Swiss companies, supported by a total federal contribution of CHF 135 million. The projects address critical infrastructure needs in three sectors: energy, transport and water.

Four of the selected projects are dedicated to energy infrastructure, with combined federal contributions of CHF 78.1 million and an additional CHF 9 million in contributions from the participating companies.

The selected energy companies are Hitachi Energy Ltd., Statron AG, Brugg Rohrsystem AG and R&S International Holding AG.

Their projects cover different but complementary dimensions of energy resilience: improving the reliability of electricity supply, deploying mobile energy storage, restoring district heating networks and replacing transformers damaged by attacks.

Together, they illustrate how reconstruction can move beyond emergency repairs towards a more comprehensive approach to infrastructure resilience, while creating opportunities for Swiss industrial expertise to address Ukraine’s immediate and long-term needs.

From Reconstruction Funding to Private-Sector Implementation

The projects were selected under the second call for proposals for projects with Swiss companies in Ukraine, administered by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

The programme is designed to involve Swiss companies in Ukraine’s recovery by supporting projects that respond to public infrastructure needs and draw on Swiss technological capabilities and implementation experience.

Unlike conventional commercial expansion, reconstruction projects operate in an environment where technical requirements, public-sector priorities, financing conditions and security risks must be considered simultaneously.

A company may possess the necessary technology, but successful implementation also depends on identifying a concrete Ukrainian need, working with appropriate local counterparts, ensuring compliance with the funding framework and establishing a realistic operational model.

The selected portfolio is particularly relevant because the companies are expected to contribute their own financial resources alongside Swiss federal funding.

Across the four energy projects, the combined contributions amount to approximately CHF 87.1 million, subject to the final contractual arrangements.

This structure illustrates a model of public–private participation in which federal support helps mobilise private-sector capabilities for infrastructure projects with a public benefit.

It is important, however, to distinguish project selection and approved contributions from completed implementation. The official project list notes that the final amounts will be contractually agreed with the selected companies.

The full programme is described on SECO’s official website:

SECO — Call for Proposals for Projects with Swiss Companies in Ukraine

Hitachi Energy: Strengthening the Reliability and Flexibility of Ukraine’s Electricity Supply

Hitachi Energy — Official Website

The largest energy project in the selected portfolio involves Hitachi Energy, the Switzerland-headquartered global technology company specialising in electricity transmission, distribution and power-system technologies.

According to the official project description, the initiative aims to improve the reliability and flexibility of electricity supply in central Ukraine.

The distinction between reliability and flexibility is particularly important in the context of Ukraine’s energy system.

Reliability concerns the ability of infrastructure to provide electricity consistently and withstand operational disruptions. Flexibility relates to the system’s ability to adapt to changing conditions, including fluctuations in demand, changes in available generation and the need to reconfigure electricity flows.

Both are essential for an electricity network operating under the persistent threat of physical damage.

Ukraine’s electricity infrastructure has faced repeated attacks affecting generation facilities, substations, transformers and transmission assets. In this environment, restoring an individual component does not necessarily eliminate wider system vulnerabilities.

Reconstruction must therefore consider how different elements of the network interact and how infrastructure can be designed or modernised to reduce the consequences of future disruptions.

Hitachi Energy’s broader technology portfolio includes transformers, high-voltage equipment, grid automation, power electronics and other solutions for electricity networks.

The official SECO announcement does not specify which technologies will be deployed under this particular project, nor does it identify the exact sites or Ukrainian infrastructure operators involved.

Nevertheless, the project’s stated focus on reliability and flexibility indicates an objective extending beyond the simple replacement of damaged equipment.

It is also worth noting that Hitachi Energy was among the companies selected under SECO’s earlier 2025 call for proposals, when a separate project focused on the reconstruction and modernisation of Ukraine’s electricity transmission network.

The 2026 selection therefore reflects continued engagement by the company in Ukraine’s energy reconstruction, although the publicly available information does not establish whether the two projects are operationally connected.

From a broader reconstruction perspective, the significance of the Hitachi Energy initiative lies in the role of modern grid infrastructure in supporting economic activity, municipal services and future investment.

Without reliable electricity networks, the recovery of industrial facilities, transport systems, residential developments and public institutions becomes substantially more difficult.

Statron: 150 Mobile Energy Storage Units for Critical Public Facilities

Swiss federal contribution: CHF 9.8 million

Company contribution: CHF 1.2 million

Project location: Eastern and Southern Ukraine

Statron AG — Official Website

While large-scale grid reconstruction is indispensable, Ukraine also requires solutions that can help individual facilities maintain essential operations during interruptions to centralised electricity supply.

This is the focus of the project selected from Statron AG.

Under the SECO programme, Statron is expected to provide 150 mobile energy storage units to strengthen energy supply and operational reliability at critical public facilities in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Statron is a Swiss company specialising in industrial power supply systems, uninterruptible power supplies, battery technologies and energy storage solutions.

Its product portfolio includes technologies designed to maintain or support electricity supply in demanding operational environments.

The deployment of mobile storage units is especially relevant to infrastructure resilience because it addresses a different level of the energy system from conventional grid investments.

Where transmission and distribution projects strengthen the broader network, decentralised storage can potentially support continuity of service at individual sites.

Depending on their technical configuration, storage systems may provide temporary backup power, help manage interruptions or complement other local electricity sources.

For public facilities, this capability can be particularly important.

Hospitals, emergency-response facilities, municipal service providers and other essential institutions depend on reliable electricity. However, the official SECO project description does not identify which categories of facilities will receive Statron’s equipment, so no specific allocation should yet be assumed.

The confirmed information is that 150 mobile units are planned for critical public facilities in eastern and southern Ukraine.

The publicly available materials also do not specify the storage capacity of each unit, its expected autonomy, the battery technology or the precise delivery schedule.

These details will be essential for evaluating the project’s operational impact.

A mobile storage unit’s value depends not merely on its availability but on whether its power output, energy capacity and integration arrangements match the actual needs of the facility receiving it.

The Statron project highlights an important development in reconstruction policy: energy resilience increasingly requires both centralised infrastructure investment and decentralised solutions capable of supporting essential services closer to the point of consumption.

For Swiss technology providers, this may also represent a practical area of cooperation with Ukrainian municipalities, public institutions and local energy-service operators.

Brugg Rohrsystem: Restoring District Heating and Building Local Technical Capacity

Swiss federal contribution: CHF 19.9 million

Company contribution: CHF 2.3 million

Project location: Eastern Ukraine

BRUGG Pipes — Official Website

Electricity infrastructure receives significant international attention, but the resilience of Ukrainian cities also depends on another critical network: district heating.

In many Ukrainian communities, centralised heating systems remain essential for residential buildings, public institutions and municipal facilities.

Damage to these systems can have particularly serious consequences during winter, when reliable heat supply is directly connected to public health, the habitability of buildings and the continuity of essential services.

Brugg Rohrsystem AG has been selected to implement a project focused on restoring district heating networks in eastern Ukraine.

The initiative includes not only infrastructure restoration but also training and further education for local skilled workers.

Brugg Rohrsystem is part of the Swiss BRUGG industrial group. Through its BRUGG Pipes business, the company develops and manufactures piping systems for district heating, cooling, water and industrial applications.

The company’s technical expertise is relevant to the rehabilitation of heating networks, where the performance of pipes, insulation, connections and installation systems can influence both reliability and long-term operating efficiency.

The official SECO description does not specify the Ukrainian municipalities involved, the length of the network to be restored or the exact technical products to be supplied.

Nevertheless, the combination of physical infrastructure works and professional training is a particularly important feature of the project.

Reconstruction is sustainable only when local operators have the capacity to maintain the