JSC Malynskyi Stone Crushing Plant, PJSC Pinyazevytskyi Quarry, and JSC Korosten Quarry have been allowed to return to granite mining.
According to NADRA.INFO, on Tuesday, 27.08.2024, the relevant order of the First Deputy Head of the State Service of Geology and Subsoil of Ukraine Volodymyr Buchko was published on the official website of the Service (download the order, appendix).
The renewal of the special permits became possible after a corrective decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, which removed the use rights granted to the above-mentioned companies from the sanctions imposed on the owners of the companies, Olena Kalpa and Ihor Naumets. It is worth noting that this decision of the National Security and Defense Council also prohibits the payment of dividends or other payments on corporate rights in favor of the sanctioned owners or their representatives.
As a reminder, in 2023-2024. the State Service of Geology and Subsoil of Ukraine suspended a number of mining and prospecting special permits for the use of subsoil to Ukrainian companies on the grounds that the business owners had previously been sanctioned by the National Security and Defense Council. See the overview of the consequences here.
The Office of the President of Ukraine promised to organize the development of amendments to the legislation to unblock Ukrainian extractive companies. The European Business Association proposed to revise the sanctions policy in the field of subsoil use.
NADRA.INFO addressed the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko and the Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Malyuk with an open appeal to adjust the sanctions mechanism to restore the activities of Ukrainian extractive companies. The SBU considered the appeal and took it into account.
The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine also supported the need to resolve the situation with special permits for subsoil use suspended due to the NSDC’s imposition of personal sanctions on the ultimate beneficial owners of subsoil users.
Eventually, on June 24, 2024, the NSDC amended the previous sanctions decisions against Vadym Novynskyi and Vadym Yermolaiev and imposed 10-year sanctions on Dmytro Firtash (the so-called first corrective decision of the NSDC). After that, the State Service of Geology and Subsoil renewed nine special permits. The NSDC’s corrective decision also provided for the revocation of a number of special permits, but as of August, the State Service of Geology and Subsoil had terminated the subsoil use rights of only Vadym Novynskyi’s companies (one of the sites had already been included in the strategic list). Motronivsky GOK and Trends System avoided revocation amid the ongoing procedure of alienation of special permits and court injunctions (for more details, see here, here, here, here).
