Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed Saturday to “overhaul” and audit the nation’s state-owned energy sector in the wake of a $100 million corruption scandal that rocked the war torn nation.

Zelensky posted an extended message on social media, promising to address citizens’ concerns over the former officials and executives receiving massive kickbacks that were allegedly laundered through the state-owned nuclear power company Energoatom.

“We are beginning the overhaul of key state-owned enterprises in the energy sector. Alongside a full audit of their financial activities, the management of these companies is to be renewed,” Zelensky wrote on X.

The overhaul will target Energoatom, hydropower company Ukrhydroenergo, oil and gas company Naftogaz, and the nation’s Gas Transmission System Operator, Zelensky said

“I have also instructed government officials to maintain constant and meaningful communication with law enforcement and anti-corruption bodies,” Zelensky wrote.

“Any scheme uncovered in these companies must receive a swift and just response. Full transparency and integrity in the energy sector remain an absolute priority. Glory to Ukraine!,” the president concluded.

Five suspects were charged in the corruption scheme which was uncovered after a 15-month long investigation by Ukraine’s National Anticorruption Bureau and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. 

Included amongst those charged was long-time Zelensky ally Timur Mindich, who is a co-owner of Kvartal-95 TV studio and was allegedly the mastermind behind the embezzlement plots involving Energoatom.

Mindich was a co-owner of Zelensy’s production company Kvartal 95, named for the comedy troupe that launched the former comedian to fame prior to his ascension to power.

After Zelensky was elected, Mindich’s business portfolio expanded into the energy sector where he allegedly plotted to pressure contractors to demand kickbacks of up 15% to bypass bureaucratic obstacles.

Corruption investigators claimed the kickbacks were siphoned off and laundered through shell companies before lining the pockets of Mindich and his associates.

Mindich has fled Ukraine for Israel and criminal proceedings will be carried out in absentia, the Times of Israel reported.

Zelensky has not been implicated in the alleged scheme.

The country’s Justice Minister German Galushchenko, who was formerly the energy minister from 2021-2025, was suspended after one of his advisors had been named as a suspect and resigned in the wake of the revelations.

“I will defend myself in the legal arena and prove my position,” Galushchenko said in a statement according to the Associated Press.

The kickback scheme was alleged to have begun only after Zelensky assumed office in April 2019, which was the same month that disgraced former first son Hunter Biden resigned from corrupt energy firm Burisma, which operated in Ukraine and dissolved in 2023.

Ukraine’s power grid, specifically nuclear power plants, have been repeatedly targeted by Russia during the war. Ukrainian officials have said Russian strongman Vladimir Putin is purposefully trying to spark a massive meltdown.

“These were not accidental but well-planned strikes. Russia is deliberately endangering nuclear safety in Europe,” Ukraine Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said after an airstrike on Nov. 9.

“We also urge all states that value nuclear safety, particularly China and India, to demand Russia stop reckless attacks on nuclear energy that risk a catastrophic incident,” he added.

With Post Wire Services