Ukraine, together with eight partner countries from the Carpathian region, has developed and presented an investment portfolio of nearly 100 projects worth more than €40 billion as part of the Carpathian 8 Summit. Of these, 55 are Ukrainian projects, while more than 40 were proposed by international partners. Over the two days of the summit, investment, financing and trade agreements worth more than €1 billion were reached. Almost half are in the energy sector, with a significant share involving industrial production, transport and logistics.
The event took place on 18–19 September in Ukraine’s Carpathian region and was attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi, representatives of the Ukrainian government, EU institutions, international financial organisations, businesses and investors from Ukraine, Austria, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia. In total, the summit brought together nearly 1,400 participants from 25 countries, including around 500 companies.
“The Ukrainian economy operates amid constant security challenges, so our task today is to mobilise every available resource to support its growth. C8 should transform the geographical proximity of the Carpathian countries into shared production chains, cross-border investment and a common investment pipeline. Our overall portfolio includes nearly 100 projects worth more than €40 billion. This is our long-term plan focused on reconstruction. Most importantly, following the Summit, we already have more than €1 billion in investment, financing and trade agreements,” said Ukraine’s Minister of Economy and Environment, Oleksandr Kravchenko.
The forum’s joint investment portfolio includes projects across eight sectors: energy, industry and manufacturing, innovative technologies, transport and logistics, infrastructure and real estate, agri-food, healthcare and construction materials.
Together, the C8 countries form a major economic area with a population of around 126 million and a combined GDP of approximately $3.5 trillion. The region’s economies are already closely interconnected through trade and production chains, ranging from mechanical engineering and electronics to metallurgy and the agri-food sector.
To deepen this cooperation, the C8 countries signed a joint Carpathian Declaration during the forum. This is also expected to strengthen the region’s access to financing through existing EU instruments while laying the groundwork for a dedicated financial instrument for C8 projects.
On the second day of the forum, the investment agencies of the C8 countries also established the Carpathian Investment Coalition to jointly develop these projects and attract international capital.
A dedicated investment EXPO zone showcased specific projects presented by Ukrainian companies in sectors considered priorities for the national economy. These included solar power generation and energy storage systems, wind energy projects, a multimodal logistics terminal in Zakarpattia and a network of logistics hubs, processing and cold-storage facilities, production of electric buses and electric motors, and a new sheet-glass manufacturing facility.
