A little more than a month after Perry attended Zelenskiy's May 2019 inauguration, Ukraine awarded the contract to Perry's supporters after Perry recommended one to be Zelensky's energy adviser. The recommendation was made as Zelensky was attempting to secure the nearly $400 million in U.S. military aid. A week after Perry attended the inauguration "Ukrainian Energy", a new joint venture between Michael Bleyzer's investment firm SigmaBleyzer and Alex Cranberg's Aspect Energy, submitted a bid for a 50-year drilling contract at a Ukraine government-controlled site called Varvynska.