The European Federation of Engineering Consultancy Associations (EFCA) has announced the winners of the seventeenth Future Leaders’ Competition 2026. The competition recognizes young professionals in the engineering consultancy sector whose projects demonstrate competence, innovation, and contribution to the development of a modern, sustainable, and resilient infrastructure.

This year, the Interstate Consultants Engineers Guild nominated two young specialists. Ukraine and ICEG were represented by Oleksii Sokhatskyi, consulting engineer with LLC VASENOV ENGINEERING, and Olena Sereda, consulting engineer and head of international relations department at the Representative Office of B-Act S.A.

Both projects they submitted were linked to addressing the consequences of the Kakhovka HPP destruction and restoration of water supply to Ukrainian communities. This sector is extremely important to Ukraine as it means satisfaction of basic needs of people, resilience of communities, and this country’s ability to restore critical infrastructure during the war.

Olena Sereda presented the project of the transmission piping construction from the Southern Buh River to Mykolaiv City. The project was aimed at restoring uninterrupted water supply to Mykolaiv and neighboring communities after the Dnieper-Mykolaiv pipeline was destroyed. In her application, Olena demonstrated the consulting engineer’s role in coordinating the project participants, working with documents, risk analysis, communication with stakeholders, and monitoring the work execution under tough wartime conditions.

Oleksii Sokhatskyi presented the project of new construction of the Khortytsia (DWS-2) – Tomakivka – Marhanets transmission piping in Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk Regions. The project targeted the consequences of Kakhovka HPP destruction and supporting the life in communities that faced a critical problem of water supply.

This very project was recognized by EFCA in the Contribution to Society excellence category. Oleksii became one of the two joint winners in this category where the jury recognized the projects delivering significant social value and positive community impact.

Ukrainian specialists are currently working in super tough conditions requiring technical competence, ability to promptly respond to critical situations, coordinate complex processes, and make quality decisions even with high risks. ICEG provides consistent support to young professionals, encourages their participation in international professional initiatives, and represents the Ukrainian engineering consulting community in the European space. Participation of Ukrainian representatives in EFCA Future Leaders 2026 is another proof that Ukraine’s experience in reconstruction, resilience, and operation of critical infrastructure is visible and adequately assessed at the international level.

Congratulations to Oleksii Sokhatskyi on the award and many thanks to Olena Sereda for her decent representation of Ukraine and ICEG in EFCA Future Leaders 2026 competition.