Sergii Koretskyi appointed new Prime Minister of Ukraine

The Verkhovna Rada appointed Sergii Koretskyi as Prime Minister of Ukraine on July 16, 2026. A total of 289 MPs voted in favor of the decision.

Koretskyi’s candidacy was submitted to parliament by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Before his appointment, he headed Naftogaz of Ukraine NJSC, and earlier managed Ukrnafta JSC and Ukrtatnafta PJSC.

Koretskyi replaced Yuliia Svyrydenko as Prime Minister. The Verkhovna Rada accepted her resignation on July 14, 2026 with 258 votes.

Who is Sergii Koretskyi?

Sergii Koretskyi was born on March 14, 1978 in Lutsk. For most of his professional career, he worked in the fuel and energy business, and since 2022 had headed major state-owned oil and gas companies.

Sergii Koretskyi

Education

Koretskyi graduated from Lutsk State Technical University with degrees in Automobiles and Automotive Economy, and Enterprise Economics.

He also studied Oil and Gas Production at Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas. In 2019, he completed the Executive MBA program at Kyiv-Mohyla Business School.

Experience

Koretskyi began his professional career in 1997 at the Lutsk-based Continuum Group, founded by Ihor Yeremeyev and Stepan Ivakhiv. According to media reports, he initially worked as a security guard before moving into analytics and finance.

In 2002, Koretskyi headed Western Oil Group JV, and from 2007 served as CEO of Continuum Group’s management company. In 2013-2018, he headed the WOG filling station network, where he was responsible for petroleum product supplies, logistics, wholesale sales and retail network development.

After leaving Continuum, Koretskyi developed his own projects. He founded the energy trading company Fortex Energy and the full-cycle coffee company Idealist Coffee Co. In 2019-2022, he was co-founder and CEO of Swiss energy trader Centurion Group SA.

Political experience

In 2002-2006, Koretskyi was an assistant to MP Ihor Yeremeyev, and in 2007-2012, an assistant to MP Kateryna Vashchuk. Later, he again worked as Yeremeyev’s assistant.

In 2006, Koretskyi ran for the Verkhovna Rada and the Volyn Regional Council from the Lytvyn People’s Bloc, but was not elected. Before being appointed Prime Minister, he had not held positions in the Cabinet of Ministers and had no experience in elected office.

Koretskyi at Ukrnafta

In November 2022, Koretskyi headed Ukrnafta and Ukrtatnafta after the companies’ shares came under state control.

In 2023, Ukrnafta posted UAH 23.6 billion in net profit, and in 2024, UAH 16.38 billion. In total, the company’s net profit over two years amounted to almost UAH 40 billion.

During this period, Ukrnafta increased oil and gas production, intensified well drilling, upgraded equipment and expanded its filling station network. In May 2025, Koretskyi left Ukrnafta’s management due to his move to Naftogaz.

Koretskyi at Naftogaz

The Naftogaz Supervisory Board elected Koretskyi as CEO following an independent competition on April 29, 2025. He took office on May 14.

Koretskyi headed the Group amid large-scale Russian attacks on gas production and processing infrastructure, a decline in domestic production and the need to urgently increase gas imports.

Under his leadership, Naftogaz secured €500 million from the EBRD for gas purchases. This became the bank’s largest single loan in Ukraine. The financing was backed by an EU guarantee covering 90% of the amount.

In July 2026, the Group also completed the restructuring of two Eurobond issues totaling around €1.2 billion. The maturity of the euro-denominated notes was extended until 2032, and the dollar-denominated notes until 2033.

Challenges for the new government

Among the main tasks for Koretskyi’s government are preparation for the heating season, protection and restoration of energy infrastructure, defense financing, cooperation with international partners and continuation of Ukraine’s European integration.

The appointment as Prime Minister became Koretskyi’s first experience in a state political office. Until now, his management experience had been focused mainly on private and state-owned energy companies.