JSC Ukrzaliznytsia has added the ability to pay for tickets via Apple Pay to its chat bot in Apple Messages, the press service of Ukrzaliznytsia reported on Friday.
“Now in Apple Messages you can pay in one click – through the most familiar Apple Pay system for Apple users,” Yevgeny Entis, deputy head of the board of Ukrzaliznytsia for business development, is quoted in the message.
According to the release, to launch Apple Messages, just click the “Messages” icon on the Ukrzaliznytsia website, after which a dialog box will open for buying tickets via Apple Pay or communicating with a support operator.
Apple Messages is available to users worldwide on 1.65 billion Apple devices and is integrated with the Messages app and native iOS features and services.
As reported, Ukrzaliznytsia launched its first chat bot on Viber and Telegram in January 2021, and at the end of last year, the chat bot became available on Facebook Messenger and Apple Messages.
The Ministry of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine has started the selection of projects under the “Program for the Reconstruction of Ukraine” in accordance with the Financing Agreement between Ukraine and the European Investment Bank (EIB).
As reported on the agency’s website on Friday, the total amount of projects for the first selection is up to €200 million. Projects must be submitted to the Ministry of Regional Development before September 2.
“Projects should refer specifically to the restoration of vital facilities for people. In particular, the renovation or construction of new medical institutions, educational institutions, ATCs, as well as the overhaul and reconstruction of critical infrastructure and homes for internally displaced persons and those who, due to lost his home during the war,” said Oleksiy Chernyshov, Minister for the Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine.
Among the conditions for participation in the selection are the communal property of the object, for the financing of which a subvention is attracted; co-financing from local budgets and other not prohibited sources to cover the costs of paying taxes and fees; the project implementation period is one to three years; a ban on the purchase or privatization of real estate at the expense of a subvention; taking into account the interests of key parties in local communities; the ability of local authorities to further finance the maintenance of facilities.
The Mirione recalled that at the end of 2021, the government approved the procedure and conditions for providing subventions from the state budget to local budgets for the implementation of projects under the Program for the Restoration of Ukraine. It is envisaged to attract EUR340 million for the restoration of social infrastructure, housing and communal services, etc. in the regions affected by the fighting, as well as in those that received the largest number of migrants.
In addition, earlier Chernyshev said that the EIB allocated EUR1.59 billion to Ukraine for the restoration of damaged infrastructure and critical projects. The funds will be used to restore and modernize the networks of electricity, heat and water supply, housing and communal services that suffered as a result of the fighting.
The EU Council on Wednesday decided to impose restrictive measures against two additional persons – ex-President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr – in response to the ongoing unjustified and unprovoked military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
The Council added the pro-Russian former President of Ukraine Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr Viktorovych Yanukovych to the list of persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictive measures set out in the Annex to Decision 2014/145/CFSP for their role in undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine and the state’s stability and security, as well as – in the case of Oleksandr Viktorovych Yanukovych – for conducting transactions with the separatist groups in the Donbas region of Ukraine, the European Council said on its website.
The relevant legal acts are published in the Official Journal of the EU.
Ukrainian ferroalloy enterprises reduced output by 23.6% in January-June of the current year compared to the same period last year, to 317,080 tonnes.
As the Ukrainian Association of Producers of Ferroalloys and Other Electrometallurgical Products told Interfax-Ukraine, in January-June, production of silicon manganese decreased by 12.9%, to 279,940 tonnes, and ferromanganese by 63.9%, to 18,520 tonnes.
In addition, production of ferrosilicon (in terms of 45%) decreased by 57.4%, to 16,620 tonnes, and metallic manganese by 49.7%, to 1,520 tonnes.
Pokrov (previously Ordzhonikidze) and Marhanets Mining and Processing Plants (both located in Dnipropetrovsk region) which extract and concentrate manganese ore, over months of 2022, produced a total of 639,600 tonnes of manganese concentrate, which is 21.3% lower compared to six months of 2021. At the same time, Marhanets Mining produced 251,980 tonnes of concentrate (a decrease of 2.9%), and Pokrov Mining – 387,620 tonnes (29.9% less).
Pokrov Mining also produced 29,550 tonnes of iron ore sinter for six months (80.7% less compared to January-June 2021), supplying it to Dniprovsky Metallurgical Plant (DMZ), part of DCH Steel from DCH Group of businessman Oleksandr Yaroslavsky. In March-June, the plant did not produce iron ore sinter, as DMZ suspended production of metal products.
Foreign trade turnover by the most important positions in Jan-May 2022 (export)
SSC of Ukraine
Metinvest B.V. (the Netherlands), the parent company of an international vertically integrated mining and metallurgical group of companies, continues to fulfill its debt obligations, including to bondholders, despite the war in Ukraine.
“At the moment, despite the war, Metinvest Group continues to fully service its debt portfolio, including issued bonds,” the company’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine in response to a corresponding request.
Earlier, the company’s information for bondholders, published on the EURONEXT exchange in Dublin on July 29 this year, provided details about the current situation in the company. In particular, they talked about the consequences for the group of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, which adversely affected Metinvest’s business and its performance.
At the same time, it was noted that the group’s assets in Mariupol, including the production facilities of Azovstal and Illich steel mill suffered from the fighting, and the Russian armed forces temporarily occupied the city. Until the active phase of Russian military aggression ends and reliable communication channels with the metallurgical plants in Mariupol are restored, it is impossible to establish and assess the impact of military operations on them.
“However, given the ongoing occupation of Mariupol, the Board of Directors today designated Azovstal and Illich Iron and Steel Works as its unrestricted subsidiaries for each bond series,” the company’s notice states.
In addition, it is specified that after Azovstal and Illich steel mill were recognized as unrestricted subsidiaries, they are automatically and unconditionally released from their bond guarantees. At the same time, according to the terms of the bonds, the company is not obliged to contribute other subsidiaries as additional security for the bond guarantee, the notice emphasizes.
