DTEK Kyiv Grids provides for the volume of investments in the development of power grids in Kyiv at the level of UAH 8.8 billion in the plan for the development of the Kyiv energy infrastructure in 2020-2024, which is almost five times more than investments made in this direction over the previous five years. “According to the company’s forecasts, electricity consumption in Kyiv will grow by approximately 9% by 2024. In order to meet the growing needs of domestic customers and businesses and increase the reliability of the capital’s energy supply, we plan to invest UAH 8.8 billion in the development of energy infrastructure in Kyiv over five years,” Director General of DTEK Kyiv Grids Maris Kunickis said when presenting the development plan for the energy infrastructure of Kyiv for 2020-2024.
According to the data announced at the presentation, UAH 1.8 billion was invested in the development of the capital’s infrastructure in 2015-2019.
The plan of the development of energy infrastructure in Kyiv, in particular, provides for the construction by the end of 2024 of four new large substations of 110-10 kV: Odeska, Lukyanivska, Brest-Litovska, Kabelna Nova, as well as the construction of 51 kilometers of 110-35 kV power grids and the reconstruction of 1,753 kilometers of networks and 231 energy facilities.
“Now we are actively working on the launch of the new SCADA software dispatch system. By analyzing the information, it will not only be able to help manage the network, but will also predict possible emergencies and suggest solutions. This will significantly improve the quality of energy supply,” the expert said.
Nika-Tera sea terminal (Mykolaiv), part of Dmytro Firtash’s Group DF, handled 26 vessels in January 2020, transshipping more than 630,000 tonnes of cargo, which is almost 20% more than in January 2019.
According to the company’s website, the main cargo in the structure of cargo turnover remains grain, legumes and oilseeds with 458,200 tonnes, or 72.6% of the total transshipment, meal with 109,800 tonnes, or 17.4%, and bulk cargo with 63,000 tonnes (10%).
“Improving the efficiency of cargo operations and increasing cargo turnover are among the key performance indicators. We started the year with very good dynamics. The growth rate is plus 19.4% compared to the same period last year. The introduction of new technologies and the optimization of loading and loading processes give their results,” port director Alim Agakishiev said.
Nika-Tera is a modern highly mechanized marine terminal included in the port business of Group DF. The terminal includes four specialized complexes: a grain complex, a fertilizer transshipment complex, an open storage bulk cargo transshipment complex, and a liquid cargo transshipment complex.
Italy’s ORI Industria SpA (Mantova), which invested in acquisition of equipment for hosiery production (the Viv’en petty trademark) of Ukraine’s RUSH retailer (the Eva chain), plans to increase its sales share to 30% (from 20% in 2019) in 2020.
“The Ukrainian market is actively growing and becoming more attractive for us. At the same time, Eva is our only major partner in Ukraine: the network accounts for 95% of all exports to this country. We hope to increase the share of Eva of our production volumes up to 30%,” the owner of the Italian factory, Marco Gerevini, told reporters at a briefing at the company’s factory.
According to Eva, sales of Viv’en petty products in 2019 amounted to more than 3.5 million units, or 6% of its total turnover of private label. The plans for the development of the Viv’en petty trademark for 2020 include sales growth of 45% (in units), an increase in its share of total sales of private labels to 7.5%, the launch of a line of fashion socks and new tights, and other.
The company does not name the share of the Viv’en products on the Ukrainian market, but claim: it is the largest among the tights of private brands.
According to Hanna Horokhovik, brand manager of the Eva network, in 2010-2011, such brands as Golden Lady, Levante, Omsa, and others began to leave the Ukrainian market, which also significantly affected the redistribution of this market.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has temporarily appointed board member Željko Marček acting board chairman of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia (Kyiv).
Government decree No. 65-r dated February 5, 2020 has been posted on its website.
Earlier the government approved the dismissal of Ukrzaliznytsia Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov without transferring him to a new position.
JSC Ukrzaliznytsia, the German national railway operator Deutsche Bahn AG and DB Engineering & Consulting GmbH (DB E&C) have signed a memorandum of understanding regarding strategic partnership for the development of Ukrzaliznytsia.
The document was signed in Kyiv on February 5 with the participation of Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy Honcharuk and member of the board for infrastructure at Deutsche Bahn AG Ronald Pofalla, an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported.
“We emphasized that within the framework of our cooperation, we will primarily focus on consulting… And we are confident that our cooperation will be successful,” Pofalla said when signing the document.
According to the text of the memorandum, “the parties agreed to study and develop a concept and a plan in order to provide DB E&C with the opportunity of providing the critical managerial and technical assistance to Ukrzaliznytsia (except for issues related to military transportation).”
The memo does not contain the final conditions and all issues on which agreement should be reached between the companies for the purpose of strategic cooperation.
Moreover, according to the document, neither party is liable for any direct, indirect or consequence losses (loss of profit, inability to use or loss of business opportunities).
The memorandum is concluded for a period of three years. The estimated period of strategic cooperation is up to ten years.
“At the first stage, we are talking about cooperation in the consultation field. But we hope that over time we will come to deeper forms of cooperation… I hope this will be the next step in building reliable cooperation between Ukrzaliznytsia and Deutsche Bahn,” Honcharuk said.
In turn, the representative of Deutsche Bahn said that the German company went through the path of privatization, which allowed it to become a successful carrier.
On the part of Ukrzaliznytsia, the memorandum was signed by board members Željko Marček and Remigiusz Paszkiewicz, on the part of Deutsche Bahn – Pofalla, on the part of DB E&C – Chairman Niko Warbanoff.
Commenting on the difference between the memorandums – signed in Davos and the current one, Minister of Infrastructure Vladyslav Krykliy said that today’s document implies more specific options for interaction between the companies.
Real growth of Ukraine’s GDP in 2020 would accelerate to 4% from 3.2-3.3% in 2019 with a flight rise in inflation from 4.1% to 5.2%, Dragon Capital Investment Company (Kyiv) has said. “Now the situation is very good in Ukraine, one of the best for 20 years of our stay here,” Tomas Fiala, the head and founder of the company, said at the presentation of the macroeconomic forecast of the European Business Association (EBA) in Kyiv.
According to him, in 2021, the company expects a slight slowdown, to 3.7% with inflation of 6.1%.
Fiala said that Dragon Capital predicts that the hryvnia will strengthen this year on average to UAH 24/$1 compared to UAH 25.80/$1 last year.
He added that, according to the company’s expectations, the exchange rate at the end of this year will be about UAH 24/$1, and at the end of the next – UAH 25.5/$1.
According to Fiala, such an economic growth with the hryvnia strengthening has already increased its U.S. dollar-pegged GDP from $90 billion in 2015 to $150 billion in 2019 and, tentatively, to $175 billion this year.
He said that this allowed reducing public debt from 80% of GDP to 51% of GDP and allows us to expect an increase in the credit rating of Ukraine by another 1-2 points in 2020.
The head of Dragon Capital said that among the main risks for the forecast is the refusal to cooperate with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is extremely dangerous in the conditions of Ukraine’s dependence on external financing and the deterioration of the global situation, especially in the grain and metal markets.
