If You Want Connectivity, Prepare a Generator – There's a Catch

Ukrainians will be paid for connecting their generators to mobile network stations during power outages – but there are caveats.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation has proposed a new initiative: citizens can rent out their personal generators to power mobile operator base stations during blackouts. The concept is straightforward, according to the ministry: the state pays, people help, and connectivity continues. However, fuel and maintenance costs are the responsibility of the generator owners. In other words, “the state is nearby,” but the gasoline is on you.

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Win-Win or Lose-Lose?

The Ministry of Digital Transformation believes this initiative creates a win-win scenario:

Mobile operators maintain connectivity.
Generator owners supposedly earn income.
The state achieves “digital resilience” during blackouts.

The idea is that Ukrainians could even help for free, since it supposedly guarantees them mobile connectivity during outages. But looking closer, the benefits exist only on paper. In reality, it’s another attempt to shift state responsibilities onto citizens, disguised as a “partnership.”

The Ministry’s Financial “Magic”

Under the official program terms, a generator owner with a unit of 7.2 kW or higher can receive 110–140 UAH per hour of operation. It sounds attractive – until fuel costs are considered.

A gasoline generator consumes an average of 2.45 liters per hour, and the price of A-92 gasoline as of November 11 is 56.73 UAH/l. Doing the math, one hour of operation costs roughly 139 UAH, while government payments reach a maximum of 140 UAH. In practice, the work barely breaks even.

Diesel generators look somewhat more promising: with a consumption of 1.75 liters of diesel per hour (57.46 UAH/l), operating costs are around 101 UAH per hour, leaving a profit of roughly 40 UAH.

Not exactly a business opportunity, but enough to cover a coffee and croissant – assuming you don’t factor in wear and tear or your own stress.

The Real Goal – Stability (and PR)

Officially, the initiative aims to maintain stable mobile connectivity during crises. On paper, it sounds useful – if it weren’t for the various caveats.

No one at the Ministry of Digital Transformation hides the fact that you won’t build a “business” from this. That’s not the point. Essentially, if you want internet during a blackout, you provide it yourself. The state seems to have decided: if people are already buying generators, Starlinks, and power banks, why spend the budget?

Meanwhile, mobile operators will continue to earn profits and plan IPOs, while citizens pay their tariffs and, on top of that, “support” the infrastructure themselves.

The Energy “Partnership” of the Future

The idea of involving citizens in maintaining energy stability isn’t bad in itself.

For example, if the Ministry of Energy had created a program to incentivize businesses to install small-scale energy units – with partial compensation or guaranteed electricity purchase – that would have been a real step forward. Instead, we see presentations, “pilot projects,” and another attempt to give the impression that “everything is under control.”

Connectivity Quality: Calls to Nowhere

According to the National Commission for the State Regulation of Communications and Informatization (NCCIR), complaints about poor mobile connectivity in frontline and border regions are increasing. The reasons are straightforward: damaged equipment and unstable power supply caused by shelling.

So the Ministry of Digital Transformation’s initiative is less about citizen support and more an acknowledgment of its own limitations. The state essentially says:

“We cannot fully guarantee connectivity. Ensure it yourself. But don’t forget to pay your tariffs and like our presentation on a ‘digital Ukraine.’”

What About Starlink?

Starlink, of course, will remain for the “chosen few”: government agencies, the military, and those posting loudly about digital transformation. There’s no question about military access. But for others, the allocation can seem overly selective – and understandably so, though in reality, it’s questionable.

If every Ukrainian had stable internet, who would buy into the next “victory of digitalization”?

Read also:

If You Want Connectivity, Prepare a Generator – There’s a Catch

Win-Win or Lose-Lose?

The Real Goal – Stability (and PR)

The Energy “Partnership” of the Future

Connectivity Quality: Calls to Nowhere

What About Starlink?

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