In November 2025, for the first time in several months, changes occurred in the top three main obstacles to doing business during the war. This is evidenced by the results of the 43rd monthly survey conducted by the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting (IER) from November 19 to 28 among 485 industrial enterprises.
Against the backdrop of intensive Russian attacks on Ukrainian critical infrastructure, the obstacle "disruptions in electricity, water, and heat supply" rose from 6th place in October to 3rd in November. It became a serious problem for 43% of enterprises (up from 19% a month earlier). Power supply issues also pushed "rising prices for raw materials, supplies, and goods" out of the top three, which was reported by 39% of businesses in November (down from 47% in October).
It is worth noting that as recently as September 2025, power outages troubled only 4% of businesses — one of the lowest results since September 2022.
"The situation may worsen, and the relevance of this obstacle based on December's results will, unfortunately, be even higher and may approach historical peaks," noted Yevhen Anhel, IER Senior Research Fellow.
The second spot, with the same result (49%), is held by the obstacle "unsafe to work."
"This indicator has remained a trend for the last year and a half, with approximately half of respondents pointing to the danger of work. The peak was in October 2024 at 62%. Businesses highly evaluate security risks, and even at the beginning of the war, only a third of respondents spoke about the danger of working," said Yevhen Anhel.
Due to increased shelling, even micro-businesses have begun to worry more about working conditions — on par with small businesses. Regionally, the situation has become more varied: over 80% of respondents in Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Vinnytsia, and Cherkasy regions consider unsafe conditions an obstacle to doing business. At the same time, businesses in western Ukraine less frequently report the "danger of working."
About the Survey. The New Monthly Enterprises Survey (#NRES) by the IER involves up to 500 Ukrainian industrial enterprises located in 21 out of 27 regions of Ukraine. The survey has been conducted on a monthly basis since May 2022. These surveys are part of the project "Integration of Ukraine into the EU: Evidence-Based Dialogue," supported by the International Renaissance Foundation.
Video Presentation (in Ukrainian). Watch the presentation of the November survey results here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtHOBDx3Zwk&t
Access all previous surveys since July 2022 at: http://www.ier.com.ua/en/proekt_dilova_dumka/NRES_Presentations
