Ukraine after the war will be very interesting for private investors to develop renewable energy sources, said Harry Boyd Carpenter, managing director for climate strategy and implementation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
“There’s also going to be a huge wave of investment in renewable energy. Ukraine does have a success story because before the war there was an extraordinary boom in RE – 5 GW of privately financed renewable energy. And that’s the template for Ukraine in the future,” Carpenter said during a discussion on Ukraine’s transition from coal to clean energy ahead of the London Recovery Conference (URC2023), scheduled for June 21-22.
At the same time, according to him, Ukraine will also receive public sector money, but it should be spent primarily on the development of nuclear energy, as well as on construction and reconstruction of networks, to ensure, among other things, the work of decentralized system of renewable energy.
At the same time, the top manager of the EBRD called the commitment of Ukraine to abandon coal in power generation extremely important, noting that this course determines the further development of not only energy, but also the economy and the whole country.
He noted that the contours of the energy sector of Ukraine in the future are quite clear – it will be built on nuclear and renewable energy, and the country has huge resources in all these areas.
At the same time, Carpenter noted that RES used to develop under conditions of “imperfect market and tariffs”, calling it a difficult transition period, but expressed his belief that in the future their development will be based on three fundamental pillars that will remove these problems.
“The first will be a commitment to a green future (…). The second is market reforms. We need a well-functioning, transparent, clearly delineated market. And the third will be integration with the European energy system, which is already in full swing,” the EBRD top manager pointed out.
Besides, Carpenter assured that EBRD intends to continue to support Ukraine financially.
“We will provide Ukraine with EUR3 billion of support. And we are already halfway there. Much of this has come in the form of liquidity support for the energy sector – Naftogaz and Ukrenergo,” the banker emphasized.
Announcing URC2023 on June, 19 First vice-premier Yulia Sviridenko announced the goals in 10 years to show the new Ukraine and to reach over 100 GW of new green power generation capacity, to produce 40 million tons of “green” steel and to bring GDP to $1 trillion per year from $161 billion in 2022.
As reported, at the end of December 2022, NEC Ukrenergo, inter alia, attracted EUR300 million of credit funds from the EBRD to purchase equipment to restore substations subjected to massive Russian missile strikes, as well as to replenish working capital.
NJSC Naftogaz attracted a EUR300 million loan from the EBRD at the end of last year, and later, in early 2023, it received a grant of nearly EUR200 million for the purchase of gas.
According to the president of the bank, Odile Renaud-Basso, the EBRD in 2022 increased the amount of investment in projects in Ukraine to EUR1.7 billion compared to approximately EUR1 billion that it invested annually before. It plans to invest EUR3bn in Ukraine during 2022-2023.
Chervonograd Lviv region has developed a project of industrial park to attract investors in the development of new businesses that could replace the coal mines located in the community, to be closed as part of the transformation of coal regions, said Mayor Andriy Zalivskyy.
“We have worked out for potential investors a project of industrial park on 80 hectares plus there is 20 hectares of territories of mines themselves. In addition, we have found more than 110 hectares of land that will not be used in agriculture and can go under the SES location,” he said during a discussion on Ukraine’s transition from coal to clean energy at the conference on reconstruction in London (URC2023), scheduled for June 21-22.
Calling on investors to develop new businesses, he stressed that “the city is open to cooperation and investment, ready to give land on favorable terms, since the industrial park allows it.”
He also called the opening of a factory for the production of solar panels and a factory for the production of heat pumps “a small dream”. At the same time, Zalivsky pointed out that the production of related goods for maintenance of wind energy could also be interesting for investors, because, according to him, “it is consumables, which will be very important”. At the same time, he noted that next year two companies have promised to start building two wind power plants in the community.
“Also on the territory of one of the mines we are planning a plant for processing of solid waste, as there is a project, and it is possible to produce biogas and biomethane,” – said the mayor.
He has underlined, that in case of opening of productions the engineering and technical personnel of mines could be used and “we would retain these people”, and in general, the community has a large resource of labor force.
At the same time, he pointed out that the city is already working on training new personnel in educational institutions.
“Last year we started retraining or training young people in new specialties. We replaced one miner’s specialty with a specialty in solar panel repair. A week later we recruited a whole group. This year we also want to open new specialties, connected with alternative sources”, – told the mayor.
In addition, according to him, the city together with the GIZ Ukraine (German Society for International Cooperation), is working on the implementation of the Innovation Hub.
He stressed that people are already aware of the reality of the closure of mines, but they will be easier to move to another production than to leave their homes, so they need to provide jobs and infrastructure for life and recreation.
“Out of 12 mines in the community, there are six left, employing more than 6.5 thousand people. Of these, 1,500 are at war. Many have died. And we have to take care of their families if these enterprises close. Thank you to the Ministry of Energy and GIZ, who chose us and help us implement this project. We are faced with the task of deciding what to replace the mines with,” the mayor of Chervonograd described the situation.
He noted that in the strategy of the city it is called the industrial heart of the Lviv region, because “we are the only ones who choose industry as the basis for the development of its territory.
As it was reported, Chervonohrad was selected to implement a pilot project to transform coal regions of Ukraine as part of the project “Supporting Structural Change in Coal Regions of Ukraine” funded by the German government and implemented by GIZ Ukraine (German Society for International Cooperation, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit).
Earlier this year, the Ministry of Energy announced that Ukraine would create a fund for the transformation of coal regions with the provision of financial contributions to it for the implementation of projects, in particular on the physical closure of coal mines.
Italian cement producer Buzzi, through its subsidiary Dyckerhoff GmbH, has reached an agreement to sell part of its business in Eastern Europe to CRH, a leading provider of building materials solutions, for EUR0.1 billion, according to an official website on Tuesday.
As clarified in the release, the deals include a business in Ukraine and assets for the production of ready-mix concrete in Eastern Slovakia. Completion of the deal in Ukraine depends on obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals and is expected in 2024.
Buzzi Unicem SpA (Italy) combines businesses producing cement, concrete, sand, crushed stone, etc. The main activity of the group is the production of cement, which is produced in its own enterprises in Germany, the USA, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Poland, Russia and Ukraine. Dikerhoff Cement Ukraine PJSC, the Ukrainian branch of Buzzi, has branches set up at Volyn-Cement (Zdolbuniv, Rivne region) and YuGcement (Olshanske, Mykolaiv region) plants. The group also operates in the ready-mix concrete sector in Kiev, Odessa and Nikolaev.
Buzzi operates six ready-mix concrete plants in Eastern Slovakia.
It was reported in March 2023 that Italian cement producer Buzzi Unicem was listed by the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) as an international sponsor of war. Buzzi operates in Russia through OOO SLK Cement, which owns two cement plants, Sukholozhskcement and Korkino, a terminal in Omsk and the transport company Cemtrans. According to the NAZK, the company is one of the five leaders of the Russian cement industry.
Irish CRH Plc, the largest manufacturer of building materials in the world, in Russia owned six plants of building mixes, announced its withdrawal from the Russian market.
CRH entered the market of Ukraine in 1999, acquiring Kamenets-Podolsky cement plant in Khmelnitsky region. At the moment CRH also includes Odessa cement plant and Nikolaevcement (Lvov region).
A separate direction of CRH business in Ukraine is the production of concrete and reinforced concrete products. PoliBeton Energo’s Bila Tserkva Concrete Plant is a specialized enterprise that produces supports for power transmission lines. The PoliBeton concrete unit in the north of Odessa joined CRH in 2020.
The National Bank of Ukraine in order to prevent unfair speculation and minimize misunderstandings in the exchange of cash made changes to its “regulations” and abolished the definition of minor depreciation of banknotes, prohibiting financial institutions to refuse customers to exchange currency, if the counter or detector on the counter confirmed the authenticity of banknotes.
“This means that the cashier can’t “by eye” to assess the authenticity of banknotes or their condition and refuse to carry out a currency exchange operation because it seemed to him that the pattern or color doesn’t match somewhere. So, we completely eliminate the human factor! – NBU head Andriy Pyshny wrote on Facebook.
He stressed that representatives of banks and non-banking institutions have been conveyed the NBU’s principled position and in case of violation such actions will be regarded not only as non-compliance with NBU regulatory requirements, but also as a potential sign of fraud.
“On such facts we establish enhanced control and take adequate measures of influence,” Pyshny said.
The head of the regulator specified that the National Bank, depending on the level of the offense committed, will apply the influence measures that include fines: for banks – up to 400 thousand UAH, which will soon be increased for significant violations, for non-bank institutions – up to 5% of the equity of the institution.
Pyshnyy recalled that the NBU has not imposed any restrictions on currency exchange based on the year of issue of banknotes and its regulations expressly prohibit imposing any such restrictions.
He said that the National Bank will hold another meeting with market participants on June 21 to discuss the decision taken on Tuesday.
On June 23, 2023, Kyiv Think Tank Club, within the framework of the initiative aimed at supporting and developing the wine industry, will hold the second tasting seminar-presentation dedicated to the winners and finalists of the VIII All-Ukrainian Tasting Competition “Variety and Terroir. Micro winemaking. Unbreakable”.
According to the organizers, this event will be an interesting event for all wine lovers, both expert sommeliers and restaurateurs, representatives of retail, media community and ordinary consumers. At the seminar, visitors will be able to learn about the products of the leading craft producers of Ukrainian wines and spirits, as well as join the platform for the exchange of opinions and ideas between leading experts in the field of winemaking.
Maksym Urakin, founder of the Club of Experts, PhD in Economics, emphasized the importance of supporting domestic wine and spirits producers.
“Our event is not just aimed at developing a culture of wine consumption in Ukraine. It also contributes to the growth of domestic production, helping the economic revival of our country. Each bottle of wine produced in Ukraine is a step towards creating jobs, increasing tax revenues and enhancing economic stability,” said Maxim Urakin.
The wine samples presented at the event will be presented by the finalists of the VII All-Ukrainian Tasting Competition “Variety and Terroir. Micro winemaking. Unbreakable” of the All-Ukrainian Association of Winemakers and Sommeliers, which will give visitors the opportunity to experience a rich bouquet of flavors created using traditional winemaking methods and modern technologies. Natalia Blagopoluchnaya, President of the Ukrainian Association of Winemakers and Sommeliers, noted that all wines presented at the event have been expertly evaluated according to all criteria, from aroma and taste to texture, color and overall harmony.
The following Ukrainian wines and spirits will be presented at the wine evening:
“Sparkling pink, 2019” by 46 Parallel TM;
“Riesling, 2022 by Babchuk Winery;
“Rkatsiteli Orange, 2020” from TM “Driukivski Wines”;
“Pinot Noir, 2021 from Chateau Pinot TM;
“Pinot Noir, 2020 by Georgiy Samsoniuk;
“Merlot, 2021” and “Cabernet Sauvignon, 2021” from TM “My Wine”, Eduard Gorodetsky;
“White dessert vermouth” and “Honey casserole, 40%” from TM “Winemaker Vinokur”;
“Chacha Odesa Black, 2022, 42%” from TM “Winemaker Vinokur”;
Zweigelt 2019 TM “Vina Kovač”
Chorna perlina 2017 TM “Vina Kovača”
“Apple, 42%” from TM “KALYUS WINERY”;
“Calvados, 42% from Ivan Gorobets.
The partners of the event are the All-Ukrainian Association of Winemakers and Sommeliers, the House of Ukrainian Wine and the Public Union Ukrsadvynprom, which actively support the revitalization of domestic winemaking and expansion of its influence on the global wine market.
Information support for the event is provided by Open4business portal and Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
The special partners of the evening, Zakarpatski Kovbasy TM and Kozatski Kozyrni Cheese TM, will provide the perfect gastronomic pairings for the wines, which will help to further reveal the taste of each bottle presented.
Each participant will have the opportunity to personally taste the wines of leading Ukrainian winemakers, evaluate their character and quality, exchange opinions with other visitors and experts, and ask questions to the representatives of the producers. The seminar-tasting, which will be held at the Club of Experts, promises to be a bright event in the life of the Ukrainian wine community, bringing together wine connoisseurs, experts and producers under one roof.
In addition to supporting domestic winemaking and getting acquainted with the best samples of Ukrainian wine, the event participants will have the opportunity to engage in an important dialog about the future of winemaking in Ukraine. This includes discussing the current problems and challenges faced by the industry, sharing experiences and finding potential ways of development.
The organizers of the event hope that this initiative will not only raise the status of Ukrainian winemaking, but also stimulate the development of this industry by attracting investors’ attention, facilitating international dialogue and opening new prospects for Ukrainian wine on the global stage.
CLUB_OF_EXPERTS, HOUSE OF UKRAINIAN WINE, SEMINAR, TASTING, UKRAINIAN_WINE, URAKIN, WINE, WINE_INDUSTRY, WINEMAKING
Kiev analytical center “Club of Experts” on its YouTube channel presented another video overview of the macroeconomic situation in Ukraine and in the world.
In the new edition, the founder of the “Club of Experts”, Maksim Urakin, PhD in Economics, noted that since official data on the population of Ukraine is not available now because of the ongoing war, the UN estimates as of June 2023 (43.3 million people) are not completely correct.
“These estimates cannot be sufficiently accurate given the availability of other data sources, such as the Ukrainian Institute for the Future, which in its most recent study estimates the available population at 29 million inhabitants. This reflects a significant population decline of nearly 9 million over the past year, caused by the mass exodus of citizens out of the country after the war began,” Urakin noted.
Despite these challenges, the outlook for Ukraine’s gross domestic product (GDP) can be considered encouraging.
“The GDP decline in the first quarter of 2023 was down from the same period last year at 13.5%. But we foresee an overall positive trend, given the forecast of the NBU, which expects economic recovery starting from the second quarter of 2023,” said the expert.
With the increase in the negative foreign trade balance of Ukraine, it is clear that the country faces new challenges.
“In January-April 2023 the negative balance of foreign trade in goods of Ukraine increased 40 times in comparison with the same period of 2022 – up to $ 7.04 billion. This means that the cost of Ukraine to purchase the necessary goods by $ 7 billion exceeded the income from export of Ukrainian goods, “- said Urakin.
The world economy continues to show strong signs of recovery from the shocks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, GDP growth rates of the leading countries differ markedly.
“In the U.S., the economy is showing moderate growth of 1.3% in the first quarter of 2023, up 0.2% from what was previously reported. In China, meanwhile, GDP grew 2.2% in the first quarter of 2023, more than expected, thanks to a rebound in exports and consumer spending. The volume of China’s digital economy in 2022 also increased significantly – by 10.3% to 50.2 trillion yuan ($7.25 trillion), indicating the increasing role of the digital economy in the country’s overall economic growth,” said Maxim Urakin.
The expert stressed that despite different levels of growth, it is clear that the economies of different countries are still struggling due to the effects of the pandemic and global uncertainty. However, they continue to adapt and strengthen, as evidenced by this latest data.
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