Railcar-building company Dneprovagonmash JSC (DVM) plans to sell up to 100 railcars for export to Europe, businessman Sergiy Tigipko has said.
“Today we produce 80 railcars a month for the domestic market, but we have already started to produce for export… The European market is 8-9 thousand railcars a year, and we have set a goal of selling 100 railcars a month there. In terms of money, the average car is about EUR 100 thousand,” he said during the “Money for Victory” forum organized by Forbes Ukraine.
According to him, the Austrian steelmaker Voestalpine provides lighter and stronger metal for railcar construction, which is a competitive advantage in the European market.
For its part, the group is investing in the modernization of the enterprise (metal work, welding, painting) and staff training.
As reported, at the beginning of 2023, TAS Group became a strategic investor in the TransAnt GmbH railcar building joint venture of Austrian Voestalpine and ÖBB Rail Cargo with a 40% stake, and in the spring of 2024 it became the majority owner of TransAnt, increasing its stake to 61%.
In October 2023, as part of an innovative project with Austrian partners, Dniprovagonmash, a member of the TAS group, shipped the first lightweight modular freight cars (MultiBOX) for operation on the EU railways, and by the end of the year it had a full line of platform freight cars for the EU market.
According to TAS Dneprovagonmash’s financial report for 2023, this year it plans to invest UAH 100.2 million in the development of the European direction, including the purchase of equipment.
In 2023, the company produced 378 freight cars (including for the EU market), which is 34.8% less than in 2022, while sales decreased by 40.6% to 370 units.
Net income from sales of railcars and other products decreased by 2.8% to UAH 1 billion 77 million, while net profit increased slightly to UAH 49.2 million.
TAS Group was founded in 1998 by businessman Tigipko. Its business interests include the financial sector (banking and insurance) and the pharmacy sector, as well as industry, real estate, and venture capital projects.
OKKO is planning to build a biodiesel plant after the bioethanol plant, said Vasyl Danyliak, CEO of the group.
“Over the past two years, we have been working on building a biofuel processing strategy, and we have made good progress in this regard. At the end of last year, we approved the concept of our bioethanol plant… And now we have a biodiesel plant in development,” he said during the Money for Victory forum organized by Forbes Ukraine.
Danyliak said that preparatory work has already begun for the construction of a bioethanol plant in Ternopil region with an annual production capacity of 83,000 tons within two years.
He explained that the group’s entry into crop production is due to the need to partially provide its own raw materials. “With the construction of the bioethanol and biodiesel plants, we will be a very large consumer of raw materials from crop production,” the CEO said.
In addition, according to him, the recent purchase of stakes in a number of enterprises also includes livestock (cowsheds), which will allow OKKO to produce biomethane.
As reported, in mid-May 2024, the AMCU granted permits to the holding company of OKKO Group, GNG Retail Limited (Cyprus), to purchase shares in Gadz-Agro LLC with a land bank of 25 thousand hectares and Ukrpolfrukt LLC (both in Ternopil region), majority owned by businessman Petro Gadz.
“Gadz-Agro currently leases about 25 thousand hectares located in one area in three districts of Ternopil region. The company is engaged in the production and sale of basic and certified seeds, cultivation and storage of grain and industrial crops, their trade, production of flour and cereals, and breeding of dairy cattle.
“Ukrpolfrukt specializes in growing berries, nuts, pome and stone fruits, fruit trees and shrubs, and nursery farming.
OKKO Group unites more than 10 diversified businesses in production, trade, construction, insurance, maintenance and other services. The flagship company of the group is Galnaftogaz, which operates one of the largest filling stations in Ukraine under the OKKO brand, with about 400 filling stations.
The group’s founder and ultimate beneficiary is Vitaliy Antonov.
The Australian Government will provide another AUD31 million (almost $20.6 million) in aid to meet Ukraine’s energy and humanitarian needs, according to a joint press release from the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and International Development and Pacific Affairs.
“The new contribution includes AUD20 million to the Energy Support Fund for Ukraine, which will allow the funds to be used effectively and efficiently to provide Ukrainians with heat and electricity,” the document says.
According to the document, Australia will also provide AUD10 million to the UN Humanitarian Fund to support displaced persons and vulnerable groups to increase access to basic necessities such as water, food and shelter.
A further AUD1 million has been allocated through the UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to improve services for people with disabilities in Ukraine, including those in need of rehabilitation from war trauma.
“The Australian government remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting the people of Ukraine and doing its part with partner countries to ensure that Ukraine can end this conflict on its own terms,” said Minister for International Development Pat Conroy.
It is specified that in total, Australia has allocated more than AUD1 billion in aid to Ukraine, including AUD880 million in military support.
“The Albanese government (Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – IF-U) unwaveringly supports Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong emphasized.
The Energy Support Fund for Ukraine was established jointly by the European Commission and the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine. The Fund coordinates international donations and works in partnership with the Government of Ukraine to ensure that Ukraine’s highest priority energy needs are met.
Since August 2023, the sea corridor created by the Ukrainian Navy has exported 50 million tons of cargo, according to Yuriy Vaskov, former Deputy Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure (Ministry of Reconstruction).
“According to my information, exports via the grain corridor have already reached 50 million tons,” Vaskov said at the Grain Ukraine-2024 conference on Thursday.
The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade reported that from August to May 10, 45 million tons of cargo were exported to 44 countries through the grain corridor.
Last Tuesday, the head of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA), Yuriy Lytvyn, said that the results of the Ukrainian “grain corridor” were almost one and a half times higher than those of the Black Sea Grain Initiative. According to him, the rate of grain cargo transportation over eight months is already 10% higher than the results of the grain initiative for the year.
Estimated number of population in regions of Ukraine based on number of active mobile sim cards (mln)
Source: Open4Business.com.ua and experts.news
Prices for benchmark crude oil are slightly declining on Friday morning after falling during the previous session.
The cost of July futures for Brent on the London ICE Futures exchange as of 8:14 a.m. is $81.75 per barrel, which is 11 cents lower than at the close of the previous trading. On Thursday, these contracts fell by $1.74 (2.1%) to $81.86 per barrel.
Futures for WTI for July in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) fell by $0.23 (0.3%) to $77.68 per barrel by this time. The day before, futures fell by $1.32 (1.7%) to $77.91 per barrel.
Pressure on the quotes was exerted by a general decline in investor interest in risky assets, which also led to a decline in US stock indices and an increase in US government bond yields.
“The US economy remains resilient, and inflation remains a concern. Under such conditions, the Federal Reserve has the ability to keep rates high for a long time, which is bad for oil demand forecasts and puts pressure on prices,” said Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades.
Even the data that commercial oil stocks in the US fell by 4.16 million barrels last week, while experts expected a decline of 1.15 million barrels, failed to support the market.
Meanwhile, gasoline stocks increased by 2.02 million barrels and distillate stocks by 2.54 million barrels. Analysts had forecast a decrease in gasoline stocks by 1.5 million barrels and the same level of distillate stocks.
