Kyivstar, the largest mobile communications operator in Ukraine, in a year after receiving the 4G license has built LTE network covering 4,587 localities where 58% of the Ukrainian population, the company reported on Wednesday. “Now Kyivstar has more than 24,700 towers. They provide 3G connection for 81% of the population and 4G connection for 58%,” the company said in a press release.
According to Kyivstar, the development of 3G and 4G communications in Ukraine cost Kyivstar UAH 22.5 billion in 2015-2018, of which UAH 7 billion was paid for licenses for new communication technologies, UAH 3.5 billion for using frequencies, and UAH 12 billion was invested in the construction of communication networks.
“In 2019, we intend to increase investment in the development of 4G, so that as many Ukrainians as possible get access to new communication technologies,” the press service said, citing Kyivstar President Alexander Komarov without specifying other details.
The company said that the rapid expansion of the 3G and 4G network made it possible to boost the volume of Internet traffic: over the year, data traffic grew by 300%. According to the press release, in March 2019, 46 petabytes were used in the Kyivstar network (of which 43% in the 4G network) – the same as in the entire 2016.
According to the company, in a 4G network, a subscriber uses an average of 5.6 GB of mobile Internet per month, while in a 3G network – 3.8 GB, and 70% of business clients in a 4G network upload data to cloud storage.
Kyivstar said that subscribers use 4G in locations where fixed-line Internet is not available or its speed is low. For example, in a number of villages in Kherson region, the average usage of 4G per subscriber is 75 GB per month, in Lviv region – 56 GB, and in Zaporizhia region – 50 GB. For comparison: in large cities, the average consumption of data traffic in a 4G network: Uzhgorod – 12 GB per subscriber; Kherson – 10.59 GB, Dnipro – 6.64 GB, Kyiv – 6.25 GB, and Odesa – 6.19 GB.
One troy ounce=31.10 grams
Source: National Bank of Ukraine
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in April raised its forecast for corn exports from Ukraine for the 2018/2019 marketing year (MY, July-June) by 500,000 tonnes compared with the March forecast, to 29.5 million tonnes.
According to the report on the USDA’s website, the increase in the export forecast is associated with a large harvest. The forecast of corn harvest in Ukraine was increased by 305,000 tonnes, to 35.8 million tonnes.
In addition, the USDA retained the forecast of wheat exports from Ukraine in the 2018/2019 MY at the level of 16.5 million tonnes, raised the crop forecast by 57,000 tonnes, to 25.057 million tonnes. The forecast for barley production was also slightly increased (by 204,000 tonnes, to 7.6 million tonnes), while the export forecast did not change (4.2 million tonnes).
In general, the U.S. agency raised its grain yield forecast in Ukraine to 69.7 million tonnes, exports to 50.4 million tonnes.
The USDA has not changed its forecasts for oilseeds processing (15.85 million tonnes) and oil exports (5.93 million tonnes), while the forecast for oil meal exports rose to 5.26 million tonnes (100,000 tonnes more) after a decline in the previous month.
Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko is holding negotiations with the owner of the largest theme park in Germany – Europa-park – on attracting investment in the creation of the similar park in the capital of Ukraine, the press service of the mayor has reported.
“We are planning to create a large amusement park and active recreation in the territory of Kyiv’s Hydropark. This is an area of almost 130 hectares, an island not far from the city center. And today we need an investor who will invest funds, experience and ideas in implementing such a large project,” Klitschko said.
Klitschko noted the coziness and stylization of old times in Europa-park and said that such a park must appear in Kyiv.
“Everything is very interesting here: cozy, stylized as an old town with modern attractions, lots of interesting entertainment, and good nature. And for children there are locations not only for entertainment, but also with educational functions. In short, both children and their parents are happy here. I have been dreaming for a long time and I will do everything so that a similar park will appear in Kyiv,” he said.
Europa-park is the largest in Germany and the second most visited amusement park in Europe after Disneyland in Paris. Last year, Europa-park was visited by more than 6,000,000 people. They come here from Germany, France, Switzerland and other countries.
Ukrtelecom will invest around UAH 270 million in the development of the high-speed fiber optic Internet network using GPON technology in almost 300 small towns and villages. Almost UAH 135 million was raised from Slovenia’s SID Bank, a promotional development and export bank.
“The start of construction of the fiber optic network is scheduled for the middle of May. The first connections to the new network will be already in July,” the operator said on Tuesday.
According to the report, the project is designed for two years and will be implemented jointly with the Iskratel telecommunications company. It provides for the construction of more than 3,500 km of fiber optic lines and subscriber access speeds of up to 200 Mbit per second, with the ability to use Internet telephony and interactive television. The partner company was selected based on the results of the tender for a comprehensive solution for the construction of the network, including construction and installation works, supply of equipment and startup works, the company said.
“The loan is secured by the insurance policy of SID bank to cover commercial and non-commercial risks. In this project, SID bank acts as an export credit agency,” Ukrtelecom said.
