KYIV. Nov 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine’s Agrarian Policy and Food Ministry and grain exporters have signed a memorandum of understanding for the 2015/2016 marketing year to guarantee food security in Ukraine.
“The goal of the memorandum is to ensure the predictability of the grain market mainly in terms of exports and guarantee food security,” Minister Oleksandr Pavlenko said at a briefing on Thursday.
In his words, market operators have drawn up a quarterly schedule for food wheat exports. The amount of grain exports are fixed for the entire marketing year.
“We expect that grain exports in the 2015/2016 marketing year will be 36 million tonnes. The existing pace of exports will let us ensure such amounts,” the minister said.
He also said that food wheat exports in the fourth quarter of 2015 and in the first quarter of 2016 are expected at 1.5 million tonnes each, and 1.4 million tonnes of food wheat is expected to be shipped abroad in the second quarter of 2016.
Under the memorandum, wheat exports in the entire 2015/2016 marketing year are projected at 16.6 million tonnes, barley – at 3.9 million tonnes, maize – at 16 million tonnes, and rye – at 8,000 tonnes.
KYIV. Nov 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will build up its stake in UkrSibbank’s capital to 40% from 15%, EBRD Senior Adviser for External Affairs Anton Usov told Interfax-Ukraine.
“With an increase in UkrSibbank’s charter capital by $130 million, the EBRD’s equity stake will grow to 40%,” he said.
As reported, UkrSibbank’s share holders at a special meeting on November 16 decided to raise the bank’s charter capital by 3.5 times, or UAH 4.466 billion, to UAH 6.239 billion through an additional issue of shares.
The bank plans to carry out a private placement of the additional issue of shares whose face value will be UAH 0.01 each.
UkrSibbank was founded in 1990.
BNP Paribas S.A. (France) had an 84.9996% stake in UkrSibbank, while the EBRD owned 15% as of the beginning of October 2015.
By October, UkrSibbank bank ranked 9th in terms of its assets worth UAH 38.084 billion among 123 Ukrainian-based banks.
KYIV. Nov 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine and Italy have agreed on cooperation in various sectors of economy, in particular in the energy sector, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said during his visit to Italy after a meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
“The Eni company has declared its willingness to increase its investment in Ukraine,” the president told the media in Rome on Thursday.
The sides also agreed to cooperate in the agricultural sector, including in agricultural engineering, and on investments in technologies, food industry, as well as in the development of small and medium businesses in Ukraine, Poroshenko’s official website reported.
As reported, Eni in 2012 bought 50.01% in Zakhidgazinvest (Ivano-Frankivsk region). LLC Zakhidgazinvest currently holds subsoil rights to nine unconventional (shale) gas license areas in Ukraine, totaling approximately 3,800 square kilometers.
Also, in 2013, Ukraine signed a production-sharing agreement (PSA) with Eni and Electricite de France on development of the Subbotina, Abikha, Mayachna and Kavkazka hydrocarbon blocks on the Black Sea shelf.
KYIV. Nov 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Investment in residential real estate in Kyiv under the transactions of Blagovist and Park Lane real estate agencies, part of First Realty Group (all based in Kyiv), in October 2015 increased by 31.4% compared to September, to $28.406 million.
Blagovist said, with reference to its CEO Halyna Melnykova, that this data includes the calculation of the cost of a transaction in the national currency at the average exchange rate to U.S. dollars on the day of the transaction.
“In October we observed high activity in the market, which according to our forecasts will be relevant by the end of the year. It is worth noting a tendency to the increase in the interest of buyers to more expensive objects worth $100,000-$250,000,” reads the report.
According to the report, in the total number of transactions by First Realty Group in October 2015 the share of deals with objects worth up to $50,000 was 23%. The highest demand was recorded for mainly renovated one-room apartments and two-room un renovated apartments in Desniansky, Dniprovsky and Pechersky districts of the capital, as well as old out-of-town houses with an area of 100-150 square meters in the nearest suburbs of Kyiv.
According to Blagovist, the most low-cost object sold in October 2015 was a one-room apartment in good condition with an area of 36.5 square meters located in Symyrenko Street in Sviatoshynsky district in Kyiv which was purchased for $26,000.
According to the report, the share of transactions in the price range of $50,000-$100,000 in the total number of transactions by First Realty Group in October 2015 was 65% – mainly two- and three-room apartments in Holosiyevsky, Darnytsky, Pechersky, as well as Shevchenkivsky and Solomiansky districts.
KYIV. Nov 19 (Interfax-Ukraine) – An agreement on providing Ukraine with a $560 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) of the World Bank Group to finance the development of the road sector will be signed on November 19, according to an announcement on the website of the Ukrainian government.
As reported, the World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved the issue of this loan at the beginning of November this year.
According to the project, repair works to upgrade about 100 km of the M-03 Kyiv-Kharkiv road on the Poltava-Valky section will be funded.
“Modernization will take place under the standard of first category roads: it will be a highway with four lanes of traffic and a high level of security, including an emergency barrier in the center and, if necessary, barriers on both sides of the road,” reads the document.
The project is to be completed in 2021. As a result of its implementation a travel time between Poltava and Kharkiv will be reduced from 140 minutes to 96 minutes with the expected decrease in the number of accidents from 139 to 85 cases per year.
The loan will also help provide funding for the maintenance and improvement of road safety on about 840 km of the main national transport corridors in the country.
KYIV. Nov 19 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Zorya-Mashproekt (Mykolaiv) has supplied marine power equipment to the Indian Navy.
The press service of the enterprise reported that it finished shipping equipment for the main gas turbine unit of a ship under a contract signed in March 2015.
“A batch of gearboxes has been shipped for the customer. Earlier, a batch of engines was delivered under this contract,” the press service said.
Zorya-Mashproekt traditionally participates in the newest projects of Indian Navy. India is one of its key partners in supplying marine power plants.
At present, Zorya-Mashproekt is making products for new ships being built in a Mumbai shipyard. The sides are working on the joint design of advanced control systems.
Zorya-Mashproekt is a world famous designer and manufacturer of gas turbine equipment, and a monopolist in the CIS market on the development and production of gas turbines for warships.
