Revenue from the privatization of state property in 2024 increased 3.1 times (by UAH 6.75 billion) compared to 2023, to UAH 9.9 billion, according to the website of the State Property Fund (SPF) of Ukraine. According to the website, in 2015, privatization revenues amounted to UAH 0.2 billion, in 2016 – UAH 0.2 billion, in 2017 – UAH 3.4 billion, in 2018 – UAH 0.3 billion, in 2019 – UAH 0.5 billion, in 2020 – UAH 2.2 billion, in 2021 – UAH 5.1 billion, in 2022 – UAH 1.7 billion, in 2023 – UAH 3.15 billion.
“In 2024, the SPFU managed to set a new record for privatization proceeds,” the agency stated.
In total, last year the Ukrainian budget received UAH 11.1 billion from privatization, in addition to UAH 9.9 billion in revenues, another UAH 1.2 billion was VAT.
At the same time, the sale of small-scale privatization objects brought in almost UAH 3.5 billion, with the most expensive lot being the Kyiv Kozatsky Hotel (UAH 0.4 billion), and two large-scale privatization assets – the capital’s Hotel Ukraine and the United Mining and Chemical Company – provided UAH 6.45 billion in budget revenues.
In 2024, the SPF also began to auction state assets with no book value or zero book value at a starting price of UAH 1. These auctions were highly competitive.
“We offer the market a wide range of objects: from large facilities to single property complexes for business development and real estate. Thanks to this, everyone can find options for investment. Over the past decade, privatization has become more transparent and its results have improved significantly,” said Ivanna Smachylo, acting head of the SPF.
Israel has sent several hundred portable EcoFlow charging stations to Ukraine to help Ukrainians get through the winter and cope with electricity problems, the press service of the Israeli Embassy in Ukraine reported on Thursday.
“The Israeli Embassy in Kyiv and MASHAV (the Center for International Cooperation of the Israeli Foreign Ministry) will hand over portable stations to families in need in different regions of Ukraine,” the embassy’s press service said in a statement. The State of Israel recognized Ukraine’s independence on December 25, 1991. On December 26, 1991, diplomatic relations between Ukraine and the State of Israel were established. In 1993, the Embassy of the State of Israel was opened in Kyiv. Since 2021, Michael Brodsky has been the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Israel to Ukraine.
In 2024, Ukraine processed 31.963 thousand tons of grapes into wine materials, which is 36.5% less than in 2023, the State Statistics Service reported. According to these data, last year wine producers processed 9.771 thousand tons of grapes that they grew themselves and 22.192 thousand tons of purchased grapes, which amounted to 30.6% and 69.4%, respectively.
The most popular varieties among processors in the analyzed period were Aligote, which was processed 5220.3 tons (16.3% of the total volume of processed raw materials), Chardonnay – 4015.9 tons (12.6%), Cabernet Sauvignon – 2742 tons (8, 6%), Rkatsiteli – 2179.6 tons (6.8%), Muscat – 1973.5 tons (6.2%), Riesling – 1792.6 tons (5.6%), Saperavi – 1595.4 tons (5%), Pinot – 1415.1 tons (4.4%), Sauvignon and Odesa Black – 1080 tons (3.4%), and others.
According to the published data, grape processing in the 2024 season decreased compared to 2023 in the varietal range as follows: “Aligote – by 30%, Chardonnay – by 10.5%, Cabernet Sauvignon – by 49.2%, Rkatsiteli – 35.6%, Muscat – 61.2%, Riesling – 17%, Saperavi – 38.8%, Pinot – 50.9%, Sauvignon and Odesa Black – 55.6% and 48%, respectively.
As a result, in the 2024 season, the production of wine materials decreased by 38.1%, to 2.391 million dal of wine materials, compared to 3.861 million dal in 2023.
At the same time, 1.618 million dal of wine materials were used for the production of table wines, or 67.7%, champagne and sparkling wines – 608.8 thousand dal (25.5%), cognacs – 91.1 thousand dal (3.8%).
The State Statistics Service clarified that the data published excludes the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the city of Sevastopol, part of the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and part of the territories where military operations are underway.
IKEA Serbia has submitted a request to the Belgrade Secretariat for Environmental Protection to decide on the need for an environmental impact assessment for the expansion and reconstruction project of the IKEA-istok department store in Belgrade, Biznis.rs reported today.
The project involves the reconstruction and expansion of more than 6,000 square meters of the department store on Astrid Lindgren Street, and the deadline for public review and submission of conclusions on the request is January 31.
The reconstruction and expansion is planned to be carried out in one stage, while maintaining existing infrastructure connections and without increasing the capacity.
The request states that the existing wastewater treatment technology and the existing wastewater separator from the transport areas will be preserved.
“Since the existing purpose of the facility is maintained, which is not a source of pollution, and given the latest environmental standards that the investor IKEA applies to all its projects, no pollution and inconvenience is expected in the Ikea department store complex in Belgrade,” the request for a decision on the need to conduct an environmental impact assessment reads.
It was also noted that pollution can be considered stationary traffic, which, according to their assessment, does not have a significant spatial dispersion or duration.
IKEA said that during the expansion, the geomechanical and hydrogeological characteristics of the soil will be taken into account based on detailed observations and analyzes.
“The implementation of the planned project will not lead to pollution that is significant for the area where it will be located. The possibility of an accident is minimized through the implementation of appropriate preventive and rapid response measures,” the request says.
The company believes that the project will not have a negative impact on the environment, so there is no need to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment.
Source: http://relocation.com.ua/ikea-rozshyriuie-svoiu-prysutnist-u-serbii/
Armed conflicts, extreme weather and disinformation campaigns will be the top global risks in 2025, according to a survey conducted annually by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Almost a quarter (23%) of respondents to the WEF survey named armed conflicts as the main reason for concern this year. Disinformation was included in the list of top global risks for the second year in a row, and environmental issues, including climate change, biodiversity loss and ecosystem destruction, were named the key risk over the next 10 years.
“Rising geopolitical tensions, eroding global trust and the climate crisis are putting unprecedented pressure on the global system,” said WEF Managing Director Mirek Dusek. – “As divisions deepen and risks increase, world leaders face a choice: promote cooperation and resilience, or face increased instability. The stakes are higher than ever.”
The WEF survey, conducted in September and October 2024, involved more than 900 risk management experts, policymakers, and senior executives. The World Economic Forum will be held in Davos on January 20-24.
Dnipro Metallurgical Plant (DMZ), a part of DCH Steel of businessman Aleksandr Yaroslavsky’s DCH group, reduced rolled steel production by 59.4% in 2024 compared to 2023, to 42.9 thousand tons.
According to information in the corporate newspaper DCH Steel on Thursday, the company did not produce steel products in December, while in November it produced 7.1 thousand tons of rolled metal.
“The production campaign at rolling shop No. 2 will begin in the third decade of January and will include the production of channels of various sizes: from 10 to 30,” the statement said.
Coke production in 2024 decreased by 1.2% to 289.1 thousand tons. In December, coke production decreased by 2% compared to November 2024, to 23 thousand tons.
At the same time, DMZ produced 5.2 thousand tons of rolled metal products and 23.9 thousand tons of coke in December 2023.
As reported, in 2023, DMZ increased its output of rolled metal products by 86.2% compared to 2022 – up to 105.6 thousand tons, coke – by 38.5%, up to 292.7 thousand tons.
In 2022, the plant reduced its rolled steel production by 74.2% compared to 2021, to 58.4 thousand tons, and coke production by 56.3%, to 211.3 thousand tons.
DMZ specializes in the production of steel, pig iron, rolled products and products made from them.
On March 1, 2018, DCH Group signed an agreement to buy Dnipro Metallurgical Plant from Evraz.
