Buying an operating solar plant in Ukraine: checks before an indicative offer
Screen an operating solar plant in Ukraine before an indicative offer: generation, land, grid, contracts, cash collection, equipment and future spending.
Jurisdiction: Ukraine. Sources reviewed . Periodic review required. Next scheduled editorial review: . Material rule changes require earlier review.
Before making an indicative offer for an operating solar plant, establish whether it can produce, sell and collect enough cash to support the proposed price. Installed capacity and last year’s reported revenue are only starting points.
An early review does not need to answer every question. It should identify whether the asset fits your criteria, which assumptions drive its value, and what must be checked before a binding commitment.
Confirm the asset you are pricing
Identify the project company, the site, the included equipment and the proposed ownership interest. Separate solar panel capacity in megawatt-peak direct current (MWp DC) from inverter power in megawatts alternating current (MW AC) and permitted grid export.
Ask which assets, contracts and receivables are included. Check whether a group company owns the transformer, holds a key service agreement or provides staff. An apparent standalone business may depend on arrangements that need to be replaced after the sale.
If you are buying the project company, review its history as well as its present operations. Separate legal personality means the company remains responsible for its obligations; a change of owner does not clean its balance sheet. See Article 96 of the Civil Code.
Ask for a small but connected evidence set
Table — scroll horizontally if needed
| Area | First documents or data | Question for the offer |
|---|---|---|
| Output | Monthly generation and export data, with interval data where available | Is performance explained and repeatable? |
| Land | Registered rights, agreements, term and restrictions | Is the operating horizon supported? |
| Grid | Connection and operating records, permitted export, restrictions | Can the plant deliver the modelled output? |
| Revenue | Sales contracts, settlements, receivables and bank receipts | What turns into cash, and when? |
| Equipment | Asset list, maintenance history, faults and warranties | What repairs or replacements are approaching? |
| Company | Ownership, debt, security, disputes and related-party arrangements | What obligations remain in the business? |
Request several years of records where they exist, plus the current year. A shorter history can still be useful, but it limits what can be concluded. Do not treat a partial year as a full-year run rate without accounting for seasonality.
Explain the gap between possible and actual output
Ask an engineer to distinguish weather effects, equipment faults, planned maintenance, grid interruptions, curtailment and other restrictions. Curtailment means output is reduced below what the plant could otherwise produce.
An inverter dashboard and a settlement meter can measure different points in the system. Reconcile the data boundaries before calling a difference a loss. Review metering gaps and estimates as well as technical performance.
Then ask whether the cause is temporary, repairable or likely to continue. A replacement inverter has a different cost and risk profile from a recurring export restriction. The offer should reflect the explanation, not just the headline reduction in output.
Check the legal basis for operating
Request the applicable construction and commissioning records and review whether they match the current plant. Article 39 of the Urban Development Law addresses acceptance into operation and prohibits operation without it where that acceptance is legally required.
Check the applicable electricity licence or the basis for an exception under Article 8 of the Electricity Market Law. This is separate from the physical fact that electricity is being generated.
Review land and grid documents for remaining term, restrictions and changes relevant to the transaction. A site visit can confirm equipment condition; it cannot establish legal title or contractual continuity by itself.
Follow the money to the bank
Identify the actual route to market. Who buys the power? How is the price calculated? Who carries imbalance costs—the costs arising when actual delivery differs from the contracted or scheduled position? Can fees, disputes or corrections reduce payment?
Where support or a special sales arrangement is claimed, verify the project-specific basis, current contracts and settlement history. Do not apply a generic tariff assumption to every operating plant.
Reconcile reported sales to receivables and bank receipts. Ukrainian accounting law uses accrual accounting: income and expenses are recorded when they arise, independently of when cash moves. That is why reported revenue and cash collection need separate checks. See Article 4 of the Accounting Law.
Translate the findings into an offer
Make a short list of price assumptions: sustainable cash generation, debt and cash treatment, treatment of old receivables, necessary repairs, and contracts that must continue or be replaced.
For an invented example, a plant may show stable production but require a major inverter replacement and additional cash to cover slow collections. Its output history can be attractive while its immediate funding need is substantial. Price and funding should address both.
State what remains subject to legal, technical and financial review. An indicative offer should give the seller a meaningful basis for discussion without presenting unresolved assumptions as established facts.
Your next step
Define your target operating stage, budget and minimum evidence requirements. Share your acquisition criteria with Tillerstone before comparing specific assets.
Legal sources checked through Mitralex on 25 September 2026. Examples and screening methods are illustrative; no plant’s performance, compliance or availability is certified here.