In conditions of energy shortages and abnormal temperatures, some shopping centers in Ukraine are switching to importing electricity, and grocery chains are introducing enhanced control over the procedure for storing and selling perishable goods.
Pro et Contra of energy import for shopping centers
These findings stem from a survey of companies conducted by Interfax-Ukraine. The Respublika Park shopping center and Gulliver financial institution have already announced the transition to importing electricity. Technical Director of BFK Gulliver Sergei Kekukh said that the tariff is dynamic, the cost of such electricity is difficult to predict, but as of July, on average it is 25% more expensive than Ukrainian and cheaper than electric diesel generators. Both shopping centers are equipped with generators. In 2023, Respublika Park invested more than $1 million in the purchase of powerful generators, and now spends hundreds of thousands of hryvnias monthly on their maintenance and fuel. BFC Gulliver has four diesel generators with a capacity of 2.2 MW, which are enough to ensure the operation of all engineering systems, except climate control.
Arricano (RaiON shopping center and Prospekt shopping center in Kyiv, Solnechnaya Galerie shopping center in Krivoy Rog and City Mall in Zaporozhye) have not yet decided to use imported electricity. “We are studying this approach and analyzing technical capabilities,” said Arricano Marketing Director Inna Morozova . But the Mandarin Plaza Group considers this option to be ineffective, although they are also negotiating on imports in search of effective and rational options.
“Due to the assessment of risks and a large number of unpredictable consequences (as of July 24, 2024), primarily for visitors to the shopping center and the work of tenants, our facilities are powered by national networks and our own generators,” said the operating director of the Lavina Mall shopping center and TR Mall Dmitry Lashin . He explained this decision by the fact that a significant increase in the cost of electricity will be included in OPEX, which will accordingly be compensated by tenants in their goods for end consumers and visitors to the shopping center. “The instability of prices for imported electricity also complicates financial planning, and we are not ready to change the conditions of tenants or leave uncertain conditions in contracts,” Lashin emphasized.
He also noted that the import mechanism does not guarantee the absence of outages. “There are examples of metropolitan shopping centers that switched to imported electricity and already had a blackout. At the same time, we always remember that businesses do not return advance payments for unused electricity,” stated the operating director. In this regard, he is convinced that the “era of generators” will not end soon, so our own generation should always be at hand in working condition.
“We will partially switch to supplying energy to our facilities through imports within the next few months (we are currently finalizing several contracts and have completed negotiations with DTEK), but the structure of this import will reflect the most optimal configuration for the businesses that trust us and operate in our shopping and entertainment centers,” – he said.
At the same time, Dmitry Lashin noted that the problem of energy shortages cannot be solved through imports. “The maximum amount of imported electricity for all consumers (the SEC is only a meager component of it) has its own limits and, over a certain period of time, we may find ourselves in a situation where, due to a large number of applications, the imports already purchased will not be enough. And we understand what priorities in providing energy to enterprises may be in a country that is fighting back the enemy,” he said.
Grocery chains rely on generators
Photo: Evening Kiev
As for grocery chains, they are relying on generators, restructuring processes and strengthening quality control of perishable goods. In particular, ATB reported that there are 1,228 chain stores throughout the country, 1,219 of which are equipped with stationary diesel power plants (DES). The rest, if necessary, work at mobile generating stations, of which the company has 15 units. To ensure maximum preservation of the freshness of goods for such groups of goods as meat, dairy, chilled fish, cakes, ATB operates without a transitional balance in warehouses.
Denis Pogorelov , Deputy General Director of EKO Market for retail chain management, said that all 85 stores of the chain are equipped with generators and modern refrigeration equipment. “Due to the abnormal heat, we are forced to optimize the display of some product categories. The stock of products that can quickly spoil (dairy products, fresh fish, etc.) has been reduced in the sales area. Enhanced monitoring of the condition of products is carried out. This also applies to incoming control when receiving goods from suppliers, and directly in the stores themselves,” Pogorelov said.
Auchan reported that during power outages, hypermarkets operate on generators, but the network has proactively introduced energy-saving methods to help stores spend less electricity: they modernized existing refrigeration equipment, thereby reducing cold losses; A furnace operating schedule has been created for hot shops, which significantly reduces the load on the energy system, and energy-saving LED lighting has long been used to illuminate sales areas. Due to energy restrictions, logistics routes for delivering products have been optimized here in order to reduce delivery time to points of sale. To store cold, bottles of refrigerant are used, which are placed in the refrigerator, due to which the cold storage is increased by four hours. Each Auchan store has a departmental veterinary service that monitors temperature conditions and regulates the amount of refrigerants for storing products; if necessary, more refrigerants are added.
At the same time, in cases of prolonged absence of electricity, store managers coordinate the removal of products by a logistics company to prevent damage to goods stored in a refrigerated state. Operating retail facilities on generators is two to three times more expensive (depending on the power of diesel power plants), ATB and Auchan reported. As for end consumers, the situation with energy shortages is already reflected in the prices of goods. For example, ATB compensates for the operation of generators at the expense of its income, but they are already recording a partial increase in prices for goods by manufacturers, which most likely has already taken into account the increase in the price of the basic cost of electricity.
