Maxim Timchenko has led DTEK since its creation in 2005. Under his leadership, the company has evolved from a regional provider into Ukraine’s largest private energy investor and an integrated European energy company.
Mr. Timchenko has played a crucial role in keeping the lights on across Ukraine since russia first invaded in 2014. On the eve of the full-scale invasion in 2022 he was instrumental in switching the country onto Europe’s energy grid and since then has led efforts to restore power to millions of homes – particularly during russia’s brutal winter missile attacks against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
Mr Timchenko is a leading voice in Ukraine’s transition to a post fossil-fuel energy system and its development as a green energy hub for Europe. In May 2023, he opened the Tyligulska Wind Power Plant near the Black Sea, which was built during war, despite its location just 60 miles from occupying forces.
On international policy platforms, Mr Timchenko is an important advocate of closer energy ties to Europe and energy independence for the continent. He has also called for market reforms within Ukraine to spur the transformation of its energy sector and market coupling.
Maxim Timchenko is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Electricity Governors community and the supervisory boards of the UN Global Compact Network Ukraine and the American University Kyiv. Forbes Ukraine named him one of the country’s 10 most influential CEOs.
Maxim Timchenko obtained a degree in Production Management from the Donetsk State Academy of Management while also studying Economic and Social Studies at the University of Manchester. In 1999, he joined PwC and rose to become a senior auditor, before joining Ukraine’s SCM Group in 2002. There he supervised the Group’s energy business until 2005 when DTEK was originated.