Australian billionaire and founder of the metallurgical company Fortescue Metals, Andrew Forrest, announced the creation of the largest fund to help Ukraine, the funds of which will be used to restore and upgrade local infrastructure. He expects that by joint efforts with other philanthropists, foundations and businessmen he will be able to raise from $25 to $100 billion, which will be used to modernize the energy system of Ukraine. The Australian billionaire told the BBC about the creation of the fund and its prospects.
Forrest and his wife made a down payment of $500 million, the businessman expects other rich people of the planet, as well as ordinary citizens, to follow his example. The fund was called the Ukraine Green Growth Initiative, and the money is planned to be directed to energy and infrastructure projects that will modernize the local energy system and adapt it to higher environmental standards.
The idea of creating a fund has already been approved by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, noting that infrastructure facilities destroyed by Russian troops will thus be able to receive modern and environmentally friendly counterparts in accordance with the best modern standards. The initiative was supported by the chairman of the largest investment fund of the planet BlackRock Larry Fink, the fund itself expects that this fact will help attract additional funding. Andrew Forrest also said that he received support from US President Joe Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“President Zelensky sees an opportunity in this initiative to completely replace coal and nuclear power plants in favor of modern green energy sources. The Ukrainian authorities will be able to use the fund's money after the liberation of the territories from the Russian invasion, ”Forrset told the publication.
Forrest is currently one of the industry's leading lobbyists for energy transition and emission reductions. In particular, it finances the reduction of the carbon footprint in the production of iron ore, finances the production of green hydrogen.
According to the latest estimates by the Ukrainian authorities, a full recovery of the economy will require about $750 billion, and about $100 billion to restore only damaged infrastructure. At the same time, this amount is likely to only grow due to the increased frequency of missile attacks on Ukraine's critical infrastructure by Russia in recent months .