Ukraine is quietly growing a new type of “fuel” — not in mines or gas fields, but on fields. Energy miscanthus, a tall perennial grass long used in the EU for bioenergy, is already being cultivated in several regions of the country and is starting to interest agribusinesses, communities and even exporters.
From lab experiment to real boilers
About 15 years ago, the Institute of Bioenergy Crops in Kyiv tried a simple experiment: instead of heating the building with gas, they switched to fuel made from miscanthus of the Prometheus variety grown right on their plot.
Result?
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back then, heating with miscanthus was three times cheaper than gas;
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today, compared to the current gas price for budget institutions, the savings are still 1.7–1.8 times, says institute representative Oleksandr Hanzhenko.
That is, it’s not just a “green” story — it’s an economic one. Scientists say such boilers can be used by communities, schools, hospitals, or agribusinesses that want energy independence.
Why Europe likes this grass
Miscanthus is considered carbon neutral: over the season it absorbs more CO₂ than is released when the pellets or chips are burned. That’s why it’s popular in Germany, Ireland, the UK and France — countries that are replacing fossil fuels and don’t have many low-productive lands, so they’re happy to import biomass, including from Ukraine.
Ukrainian fields: from 65 to 200 hectares
In Zhytomyr region, farmer and co-founder of Miscanthus Technology LLC Vadym Krychkovskyi planted 65 hectares of miscanthus right in the spring of 2022 — in the middle of the full-scale invasion. Now it’s already over 200 ha, making it one of the largest plantations in Ukraine.
“Three years ago, everyone smiled and said nothing would come of it. And today there are already real customers across Ukraine — first of all to secure their own production. Ukrainian agroholdings are now counting whether to switch their plants to this crop,” Krychkovskyi told DW.
So the market is not theoretical — there are buyers.
What’s so good about miscanthus?
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More energy than wood. Burning 1 ton of dry miscanthus gives about 20% more energy than 1 ton of wood.
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Can replace gas. One ton of miscanthus ≈ 500 m³ of natural gas in energy.
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Grows on poor soils. It doesn’t need black soil — on the contrary, it feels fine on depleted or marginal lands where traditional crops aren’t profitable.
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Improves the soil. The powerful root system leaves organic residues and gradually enriches the land.
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Perennial. You plant it once — and then harvest for 15–20 years.
In wartime, this is a rare combination: local raw material, low logistics costs, and the ability to heat facilities even if gas is expensive or unavailable.
Where it can be used
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municipal boilers in communities;
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heating of agro/food processing plants;
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greenhouse farms;
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schools and hospitals in rural areas;
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enterprises that want to reduce energy costs and report on “green” solutions.
What’s missing?
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more pelletizing/chipping lines close to plantations;
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inclusion of miscanthus in regional energy programs;
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long-term contracts from municipalities or big agri-companies — this will push farmers to plant more.
Ukraine already has first fields, technologies and buyers. Now it’s a question of scale: miscanthus can become exactly the kind of local bioenergy crop that replaces imported gas and expensive firewood — especially in regions with lots of marginal land.
