The OKKO group of companies, together with its agribusiness partner Gadz-Agro LLC (Ternopil region) have expanded their land bank to 50,000 hectares and will increase it to 100,000 hectares by 2030, while the number of cows will be increased from 11,000 to 15,000, OKKO Group CEO Vasyl Danylak said in an interview with Forbes Ukraina.
He recalled that OKKO entered the agricultural business in 2023 and offered the owner of Gadz-Agro to build a biogas plant near his cowsheds. However, he proposed another option for cooperation – to enter into a partnership and develop together.
“We entered into a 50/50 partnership with Gadz Agro. They are a long-standing client with whom we worked on an agricultural financing program. (…) At that time, it was a company with 26,000 hectares of land and 9,500 cows – a large company with a remarkable owner,” said Danylak.
The CEO of OKKO reported that in 2024, the agricultural business expanded its land bank by almost 6,000 hectares and invested in cowsheds. Currently, the joint ownership includes 32,000 hectares of land and 11,000 cows, which produce 188 tons of milk per day. During 2025, OKKO and Gadz-Agro consolidated more than 17,000 hectares.
“This business fits organically into our structure – we supply fuel and fertilizers there, and we get meat for our workshops and grain for our traders from there,” explained Danilyak.
According to him, OKKO Group and Gadz-Agro plan to increase their land bank to 100,000 hectares by 2030, have 15,000 cows, and build a biogas production facility.
“The idea is for this business to be self-sufficient and pay dividends. (…) In terms of return on investment, agriculture and petroleum products are roughly equivalent businesses. But the investment opportunities are different. We have the opportunity to invest in agriculture, but not in expanding the network,” Danilyak noted.
At the same time, the CEO of OKKO expressed confidence that agribusiness in Ukraine will grow in the foreseeable future, while the petroleum products market is unlikely to do so. “A growing market forgives mistakes. A falling market does not forgive mistakes,” he stressed.
Responding to a question about the specifics of doing business with a partner in the agricultural sector, Danilyak clarified that OKKO and Gadz-Agro are represented by two representatives each on the supervisory board. He added that OKKO GROUP does not plan to invest in port logistics for the export of agricultural products.
OKKO Group unites more than 10 diverse businesses in the fields of manufacturing, trade, construction, insurance, services, and other services. The group’s flagship company is Galnaftogaz, which operates one of the largest petrol station chains in Ukraine under the OKKO brand, with almost 400 petrol stations.
The founder and ultimate beneficiary of the group is Vitaliy Antonov.
