Center for energy, nuclear and natural resource law

In 2001, at the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine, taking into account the proposals of the Ministry of Fuel and Energy, the Ministry of Emergency Situations and Protection of the Population from the Consequences of the Chernobyl Disaster, The National Electricity Regulatory Commission established a self-financing scientific and research enterprise «Center for Energy and Nuclear Law».

The Center's charter included among its main tasks the performance of scientific research, the preparation of scientific and methodological recommendations, and the provision of expertise on issues of legal regulation of relations in the field of energy and nuclear law, related branches of law, in particular, regarding energy conservation, reform of electricity markets, privatization in the industry, minimizing the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident, as well as organizing relevant scientific, scientific and practical conferences, symposiums, seminars, round tables, and other events.

Since its establishment, the Center has carried out a wide range of scientific research on the evaluation of the effectiveness of Ukrainian energy legislation, its adaptation to the legislation of the European Union, at the request of interested state bodies and business structures, risk assessments regarding the possibility of illegal movement of radioactive materials across the state border, a corresponding comparative analysis of national and foreign legislation was conducted, and a number of legal examinations were carried out.

Based on the results of the research conducted by the Center, a number of conferences and seminars were prepared and held, and the main scientific achievements of the Center were also reported on at numerous international and other conferences, seminars, and round tables. The collection "Energy Legislation» (in 2 volumes, Kyiv, 2003) was published, which includes relevant acts of legislation of Ukraine and the European Union. Scientific articles prepared by the Center's experts have been published in leading scientific publications.

By the Resolution of the Presidium of the NAS of Ukraine dated February 27, 2009, in order to expand the scope of activities of the aforementioned Center, improve its interaction with interested state bodies, local governments, scientific institutions, and implement scientific developments, the Center was renamed, The new version of the Center's Statute was approved, which was named «State Enterprise «Research Center for Energy, Nuclear and Natural Resources Law of the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine».

According to the Statute, the subject of the Center's activities is:

 — conducting scientific research, preparing scientific conclusions, developing scientific and methodological and other recommendations on issues of legal regulation of relations in the field of energy, nuclear, natural resource law, as well as in related areas of law, regarding the application of relevant legislation, its scientific interpretation;

— research into legal issues of energy, nuclear and environmental safety, issues related to the processes of rational use of energy and natural resources, renewable energy sources and natural resources, resource and energy conservation, reform and privatization, market formation, activities of business entities, natural monopolies, entities operating in related markets, minimizing the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident, emergency environmental situations, man-made and adverse natural processes and phenomena, protection of the population and territories from their effects;

— development of draft legislative, other regulatory and legal acts, as well as regulatory acts, on behalf of state bodies, local governments and their associations, enterprises, institutions, international and other organizations, citizens;

— providing advisory, informational and other services to individuals and legal entities on issues of nuclear, energy, natural resource and other legislation, and the practice of its application;

— organization and holding of international and all-Ukrainian scientific, scientific and practical conferences, symposiums, seminars, round tables, other meetings on energy, nuclear, natural resource and other branches of law;

— carrying out publishing activities, manufacturing and issuing publishing products, carrying out exhibition activities;

— promoting the training, retraining and advanced training of specialists of various educational and qualification levels, scientific personnel on issues of energy, nuclear, natural resources and other branches of law, providing relevant educational services;

— conducting research, expert and other work to study international experience in the development of energy, nuclear, natural resource and related areas of law,as well as on the issues of adaptation and harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with the legislation of the European Union, the implementation of relevant international treaties of Ukraine, the practice of their implementation, and the development of relevant proposals;

— conducting scientific and scientific-legal examinations, preparing relevant conclusions, at the request of state authorities and local governments, their associations, enterprises, institutions, organizations of various forms of ownership, and citizens;

— representation and protection in accordance with the established procedure of the interests of legal entities and citizens in courts, as well as in relations with enterprises, institutions and organizations of all forms of ownership.

According to the Charter, the Center may also engage in other types of activities that are not prohibited by the legislation of Ukraine.

The Center is an independent economic entity, is part of the Department of History, Philosophy and Law of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, and cooperates in its activities with institutions of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, other scientific institutions, higher educational institutions, public and other organizations and institutions. The scientific management of the Center's activities is carried out by the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

Leading scientists, specialists in energy, nuclear and natural resource law from the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine, the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, the Yaroslav the Wise National Law Academy, the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, are involved in the work of the Center as experts,Institute of Economic and Legal Problems of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, other well-known scientific centers, higher educational institutions, project institutes, academicians, corresponding members of the National Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Legal Sciences, other branch academies, doctors, candidates of sciences.

The Center actively cooperates with relevant parliamentary committees, interested central executive bodies on issues of regional development, construction and housing and communal services, environmental protection, nuclear regulation, electricity regulation, etc., and energy generating companies, fulfilling their orders at a high level.

In recent years, the Center has conducted research on legal issues related to the functioning of centralized water supply and wastewater systems. To ensure proper resolution of these problems, taking into account the requirements for meeting the relevant needs of citizens, the need for legislative regulation of this one of the spheres of natural monopolies, and the implementation of the interests of rational use of water resources, a draft law on centralized water supply and wastewater disposal has been developed. An assessment of domestic and international legislation regarding the creation of a unified emergency notification and response service in Ukraine under the number 112 was conducted. The Center took an active part in developing the concept of heat supply, issues of legal support for overcoming the consequences of flooding of settlements, conducted a systematic analysis of the terminology used in domestic legislation on the safety of nuclear power plants, based on the results of which a multilingual explanatory dictionary is being prepared for publication.

The Center took an active part in the implementation of many fundamental and applied scientific researches of the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine, in particular, in recent years, on issues of improving the legal support for energy security in the interests of sustainable, innovation-oriented development of Ukraine, on solving organizational and legal problems of energy conservation and the use of alternative energy sources.

In 2010, the Center ensured the development of a package of draft laws on the territorial organization of power, which included a draft law on the foundations of state regional policy, new editions of the Laws of Ukraine «On Local Self-Government in Ukraine», «On Local State Administrations», draft laws on the administrative-territorial structure and on stimulating the unification of territorial communities.

Currently, research is being conducted to develop mechanisms for legal regulation of holding entities operating in the nuclear energy sector accountable for violating the requirements of legislation and permits. A draft of the relevant regulatory legal act is being prepared.

The Center actively participates in the implementation of scientific research and the development of draft laws by other scientific centers and institutions, and public organizations. A cooperation agreement has been signed with the Ukrainian Center for Promoting the Development of Public-Private Partnerships.

The scientific and legal expertise of the draft Rules for the Development of Oil and Gas Fields, regarding the specifics of the procurement of goods and services for state funds for the needs of nuclear energy, the powers and procedure for conducting annual and extraordinary meetings of members of the Wholesale Electricity Market of Ukraine, conducting mutual settlements in accordance with the Law of Ukraine «On measures aimed at ensuring the sustainable functioning of enterprises of the fuel and energy complex», procedures for conducting and paying for assigning a cadastral number to a land plot and entering relevant data into the state land register, paying a part of the profit to the state budget based on the results of financial and economic activities, the procedure for resolving issues of naming (renaming) streets, alleys, and providing addresses in settlements of Ukraine, in particular on lands owned by the state, as well as on lands of the water fund, free development, production and issuance of documents to certify land ownership, procurement of public services for this and other particularly important issues.

To discuss the most complex problems, promising areas of activity development, carry out scientific and scientific and technical assessment of the topic and results of research work, as well as other issues, the Scientific Council of the Center was formed, which includes leading scientists, who work in the field of energy, nuclear, environmental and natural resource law, related areas of law from Ukraine and other countries.

From the time of its foundation until April 2008, the Center was headed by Semchyk V. I. — Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Academician of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, Doctor of Law, Professor, Head of the Department of Agrarian, Land and Environmental Law of the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, who continues to work at the Center as a scientific consultant.

Currently, by decision of the Presidium of the NAS of Ukraine, the Center is headed by V. I. Oleshchenko — a senior researcher of the same department of the Institute, Candidate of Geographical Sciences, Associate Professor, Honored Lawyer of Ukraine, laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in the field of science and technology.

Oleschenko V. I. (02.07.1953, Poltava), Senior Research Fellow at the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine, Honored Lawyer of Ukraine (2002), Laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in the field of science and technology (2005), Candidate of Geographical Sciences (1992), Associate Professor (2007), Academician (2002), Corresponding Member (1993) of the Ukrainian Ecological Academy of Sciences (Department of Law and Management).

He graduated with honors from the Faculty of Geography of the Taras Shevchenko Kyiv State University (1975), postgraduate studies there (1979) and the Ya. Mudryi National Law Academy of Ukraine (1996). He studied, did research and did internships on issues of global security, environmental protection, implementation of international treaties and other issues at Cambridge, Oxford, De Montfort Universities (Great Britain), the Academy of Educational Development (USA), the UN Economic Commissions for Europe, the Council of Europe, and European commissions.

Since 1979, after completing his postgraduate studies, he worked at the State Committee of the Ukrainian SSR for Nature Protection as an inspector, leading inspector for protected areas, assistant to the Chairman of the State Committee, head of the department (sector) of science and international cooperation, in 1990—1996 — senior, chief consultant to the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Environmental Policy,subsequently, until November 2006 — chief consultant, head of department, deputy, first deputy head of the Main State Legal Service of the Administration (then — Secretariat) of the President of Ukraine. Laureate of the All-Ukrainian competition for the best professional achievement «Lawyer of the Year» in the nomination Lawyer of State Authorities and Local Self-Government Bodies (1999, 2002), awarded the Certificate of Honor of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine for special merits in the development of local self-government (2002).

He constantly combined his work in the civil service with scientific, teaching and public activities. Since the transition to scientific work in February 2007, he has been working as a senior researcher in the department of problems of agrarian, land and environmental law at the V. M. Koretsky Institute of State and Law of the NAS of Ukraine, part-time — Leading Researcher of the Department of Regional Policy and Local Self-Government Development of the Council for the Study of the Productive Forces of Ukraine of the NAS of Ukraine, Associate Professor of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

Vice-President of the Ukrainian Geographical Society (since 2004). Member of the Union of Lawyers of Ukraine. He defended his dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Geographical Sciences in 1992 on the topic «Analysis of the Organization of Geosystems for Optimization of Environmental Protection». One of the developers of modern scientific and organizational principles of environmental protection in Ukraine, co-author of the most important draft laws in the field of environmental law, in particular, the draft Laws of Ukraine «On Environmental Protection», «On the Nature Reserve Fund of Ukraine», «On the Ecological Network», «On One of the developers of modern scientific and organizational principles of environmental protection in Ukraine, co-author of the most important draft laws in the field of environmental law, in particular, the draft Laws of Ukraine «On Environmental Protection», «On the Nature Reserve Fund of Ukraine», «On the Ecological Network». Participated in the preparation of a number of international agreements. Coordinator and executor of numerous national and international scientific projects and programs, in particular, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Regional Development and Construction, the Global Environmental Fund, World Bank, UNECE, Council of Europe on sustainable development, conservation of natural diversity, waste management, creation of a national environmental monitoring system, environmental information systems to support management decisions, development of environmentally friendly business activities, local government, regional, environmental policy, legal support for energy policy, energy conservation, use of alternative energy sources, etc.

Representative of Ukraine in the Committee of Senior Officials on Territorial Planning (CEMAT, Council of Europe, since 2001), Deputy Head of the Section of General Theory of Administrative Justice of the Scientific Advisory Council under the Supreme Administrative Court of Ukraine (since 2007), members of the Presidium of the Scientific and Technical Council of the Ministry of Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine (since 2007), for a long time he was an expert on environmental policy of the UNECE, the European Center for Environmental Policy (Brussels).

Author and co-author of over 100 scientific publications published in Ukraine and abroad, 19 of which are monographs, reference books, textbooks, and legislative commentary. Teaches courses under his own programs «Legal basis of nature use», «Management of natural resources», «International environmental agreements», «Legal basis of tourism», organizer and participant of numerous international and all-Ukrainian scientific congresses, conferences, seminars, etc.

Tel. Center: 278 37 94.