Demand for Ukrainian wheat remains high, in particular from Spain, where last week agreements were concluded for the supply of feed wheat at a price of $237-238 per ton with delivery in January, according to the analytical cooperative “Pusk”, established within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Rada.
Analysts noted that the world markets are facing competition from Russian wheat, which dominates the markets of Algeria, Tunisia and the Middle East due to its aggressive pricing policy. However, the situation, according to experts, may change in 2025.
“It is expected that from February to June 2025, the Russian Federation will be able to export only 11 million tons due to the introduction of an export quota. This is significantly less than in the previous season, when the quota was 28-29 million tons. An additional factor of influence is the unsatisfactory condition of 30% of winter crops in Russia. We can expect a gradual increase in wheat prices already in December-January, which may amount to $20-25 per ton,” – predicted in ‘Pusk’.
Analysts added that on the domestic market of Ukraine, wheat of 2-3 class remains the main commodity for processors, while exporters are offered feed grain.
Canadian mining company Black Iron Inc. with assets in Ukraine has started the active process of obtaining permits for iron ore mining within the framework of the implementation of the new Shimanovskiy iron ore project in Kryvyi Rih. According to the materials available to Interfax-Ukraine, a subsidiary of Shimanovskoye Steel LLC has applied for a permit for open-pit iron ore mining in the northern part of the Shimanovskoye open pit.
It is planned that the total volume of overburden ore will be 5.13 million cubic meters, including 1.31 million cubic meters of ore, and the open pit will be 660 meters by 390 meters and 80 meters deep. It is also expected to produce 4.5 million tons of ore per year during year-round operation.
As reported, Black Iron Inc. continues to advance the Shimanovskoye iron ore project, having prioritized it by concluding an investment agreement with the country’s government. The main issue remains the obtaining of a land plot under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense. Discussions with the Ministry of Defense have led to an agreement on the preliminary amount of money that Black Iron will have to pay as compensation for obtaining this land for its use.
The Company has also stated that it is considering new potential projects.
In October 2010, Black Iron acquired the Cypriot subsidiary of Geo-Alliance Ore East Limited, along with licenses, from the EastOne investment group of Ukrainian businessman Victor Pinchuk for $13 million, then renaming it BKI Cyprus. Its main assets are 99% in Shimanovskoye Steel LLC and Zelenovskoye Steel LLC (both in Dnipro).
In July 2013, after a number of problems with the implementation of the project, Black Iron Inc. announced an agreement with Ukraine’s largest mining and metallurgical group Metinvest to develop its iron ore assets. Metinvest B.V. paid Black Iron Inc.$20 million and acquired a 49% stake in BKI Cyprus. However, Metinvest later withdrew from the project.
The Shimanovskoye iron ore deposit is surrounded by five other operating mining operations, including ArcelorMittal’s iron ore complex. Existing infrastructure, including access to power, rail and port facilities, Black Iron believes will allow the project to ramp up to production quickly.
According to the presentation dated May 2021, the expected capital investment for the launch of the first phase is estimated at $452 million, the second – $364 million. The project envisaged the construction of a plant for the production of premium iron ore raw materials with an iron content of over 68% with a capacity of 4 million tons per year in the first phase and 8 million tons per year in the second.
LLC Shimanovskoe Steel was registered in June 2007. Black Iron (Cyprus) owns 100% of Shimanovskoye Steel. The authorized capital is UAH 193 mln 677,830 th.
AllSeeds Group, one of Ukraine’s largest producers of sunflower oil and meal, has stopped buying raw materials for processing and finished products for export due to delays of ships in ports during the implementation of a new system of export security, the head of the group Vyacheslav Petrishche said on Facebook.
He recalled that on the initiative of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy from December 1 began to operate the export security regime to operations for the export of certain types of agro-commodities, which provides a new procedure for customs clearance of export cargoes.
“Well a good thing it seems. Allegedly to combat the shadow market and return currency to the country. I am personally unequivocally in favor of it. I have always been, am and will be against the shadow market. But can it be done not to the delight of the enemy during the bombings, but for the good of the motherland? (…) If you introduce a new procedure, can it be tested first? Will it work at all?” – wrote Petrishche.
According to his information, the authorities issued permits for loading agro-products with all necessary checks on November 29 (before the introduction of the new system – IF-U). Large ships entered Odessa seaports, carried out loading for several days and waited a long time for registration.
“Did you put all this goodness under the berths on purpose for inspection? So that the enemy could take better aim???? (…) during the war I would call it sabotage, you can’t think of anything else. (…) Well, let these boats go (the law has no retroactive effect) and do not launch new ones (and they are already waiting) until exporters submit export documents properly executed according to the new procedure”, – said the head of the AllSeeds group of companies.
Petrische drew attention to the growing losses of companies due to ship demurrage and pointed to safety problems during the downtime in the transition period when implementing the new agro-export system.
“Our company has stopped buying raw materials for processing and finished products for export. It is better to let people go home and sit with their money than to take the risk that if you are not the enemy, you will be “sheltered” by your own people. I recommend it to everyone,” Petrishche emphasized.
He reminded the head of the parliamentary finance committee, Daniil Hetmantsev, that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and recommended him to “ruin the whole economy” on his own.
“God grant him health, and God grant the country to survive it! (…) It’s a shame for the State,” summarized the head of the AllSeeds group of companies.
Allseeds Group is one of the five largest Ukrainian producers and exporters of vegetable oils and meal. It owns an oilseed processing plant with a capacity of 2200 MT per day of sunflower seeds (or 1500 MT per day of rapeseed or 1 day of soybeans), which is located in the port “Yuzhny” (Odessa region).
Allseeds also provides transshipment services for vegetable oils and oilseed meal at its terminals in Yuzhny. The capacity for simultaneous storage of vegetable oils is more than 100 thousand tons, and of oil meal – 30 thousand tons.
Import changes in % to previous period in 2023-2024
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In Ukraine in January-October 2024 legal production of alcohol increased by 35.4% or $6.2 million compared to the same period last year, said the head of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax and customs policy Daniil Getmantsev.
“An interesting figure to the issue of detenization of the alcoholic beverage market. In the first 10 months of this year, the legal production of alcohol in the country increased by 35.4%, or $ 6.2 million, compared to the first 10 months of 2023,” he wrote in his Telegram channel on Thursday, expressing confidence that the industry has detenized.
The head of the Finance Committee thanked the State Tax Service for the work done on detinization of the alcohol market.
Export changes in % to previous period in 2023-2024
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