KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The development of a plan for zoning Kyiv could be completed in June-July 2016, Head of Kyiv Investment Agency Oleh Mistiuk considers.
“A decision has been made to develop town-planning documentation as zoning. This will be done in two or three months. I think zoning for the whole of Kyiv will be developed by the middle of this year,” Mistiuk said, speaking in the debate “Decentralization: topical issues of investment and development” in Kyiv.
According to the agency head, the finalization and approval by Kyiv City Council of the zoning plan will allow the city to allocate land plots and change their purpose for the construction of new facilities even without developed and approved projects of detailed area plans.
“We can expect that in a few months Kyiv City Council will begin to allocate land plots for renovation or new construction,” the expert said.
At the same time, Kyiv City Council Secretary Oleksiy Reznikov noted that the process of approval of the zoning project by the city authorities might be delayed until the end of the year, as will cause a broad discussion in Kyiv City Council, as well as by public organizations.
KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Public investment in construction should be focused on the development of infrastructure projects, Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman has stated.
“A preliminary analysis of the current budget showed that the state invests money in the objects that are 5-7% completed over a year to bring the level to 10%. Simply put, funds are invested in construction pits and turn into eternal construction. If we focus on infrastructure projects, the program of repair and construction of Ukrainian roads, we’ll get several results and make a really useful thing for the country,” Groysman said, when presenting the program of the new government in the Verkhovna Rada.
He also noted that it is necessary to spend public investment on energy efficiency and the development of infrastructure objects, while providing control over the use of the allocated funds and the quality of implemented projects with the support of international organizations.
“In fact, we need to start the overhaul of the country,” the premier added.
KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Zhytomyr Pharmaceutical Factory LLC in 2015 saw net profit rise by 12.8% compared to 2014, to UAH 11.94 million.
According to a company report in the information disclosure system of the National Commission on Securities and the Stock Market, its net income increased by 29.2%, to UAH 292.069 million, gross profit rose by almost 50%, to UAH 153.249 million.
As reported, in 2014 Zhytomyr Pharmaceutical Factory saw net profit fall by 21.3% compared to 2013, to UAH 10.584 million.
Zhytomyr Pharmaceutical Factory produces medicines mainly based on raw materials of vegetable and animal origin under the trademarks of Vishpa and Zhytomyr Pharmaceutical Factory. When forming the product portfolio, the company gives priority to production and development of drugs that are used in urology, gynecology, rheumatology and pediatrics.
KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The action program of the new Ukrainian government led by Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman provides for the gradual liberalization of foreign exchange regulation as part of the financial sector reform.
Under the program, this reform also envisages the formation of modern stock exchange infrastructure and conditions for the functioning of commodity exchange market.
In addition, Groysman intends to continue the harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with that of the European Union. The program provides for the adoption of new legislation based on EU standards, in particular that on limited liability companies, and the introduction of a mechanism of corporate agreements.
The program also provides for the simplification and adoption of international accounting standards, transparent privatization of state-owned enterprises, and the introduction of international accounting standards and independent management at state-owned enterprises.
In addition, the new cabinet will take care of improving the efficiency of public investment management and the reform of the State Audit Service.
KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine’s Infrastructure Ministry is preparing a memorandum with the largest Chinese investor to develop a feasibility study for the development of high-speed rail link on the Kyiv-Lviv-Warsaw-Berlin route, as well as the Kyiv-Odesa direction, Minister Volodymyr Omelian has said during “The hour of questions to the government” in the parliament.
“We are preparing a memorandum for signing with one of the largest Chinese investors, first of all, on a feasibility study for high-speed rail link on the directions of Kyiv-Lviv-Warsaw-Berlin and Kyiv-Odesa with extension to Crimea when it is returned to Ukraine,” the minister said.
Omelian has not specified other project details.
As reported, in March Lviv authorities reported on the plan to build a narrow gauge railway to Warsaw.
KYIV. April 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The McMahon spouses who are owners and investors in Ukraine’s leading manufacturer of upholstered furniture, Morgan Furniture LLC (Kvasyliv, Rivne region), plan to invest UAH 280 million (EUR 9.3 million) in the expansion of production facilities and additional equipment within three years.
The implementation of the project will let the company boost output and exports by 3.4 times from the target indicators of 2016 to UAH 3 billion, co-founder of Morgan Furniture LLC Lorraine McMahon said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Thursday.
The number of jobs available at the enterprise is also expected to increase to 2,100 from 750 as of today, and the company will ensure a large number of jobs with Ukrainian suppliers.
In addition, the furniture manufacturer plans to expand its premises by 18,000 square meters.
Director of Morgan Furniture LLC Roman Basarab announced at the press conference that as of the end of 2015, the company’s revenue was UAH 485 million (all output was exported), which was 39% up on 2014.
“In 2014, when Ukraine’s economy was seeing the most difficult periods, the company demonstrated revenue growth and exports by almost three times, having sold products worth UAH 350 million. As a result, in 2014 and 2015, the company was in the lead in the manufacture of upholstered furniture in Ukraine,” Basarab said.
In the current year, the company’s production is expected at UAH 880 million.
The average wage at the company’s factory is UAH 5,000, which is 43% up on the average monthly wage in Rivne region.
The investors plan to transform the company into a world-class production facility, as the Rivne complex has all the preconditions for this, Lorraine McMahon said.
In particular, it has entered a large European market and established relationships with most of retail chains. What is more, Rivne has a strategically convenient location for easy access to EU markets.
“Morgan Furniture’s success story is a positive message for the business community that one can do business in Ukraine successfully. The investors of the company are interested in spreading this positive message, as they have serious plans for further expansion of business in Ukraine,” she said.
At present, the factory’s products are exported to Germany, France, Great Britain, Poland, Austria, and other Paneuropean Union member states.
According to her, the fact that Ukraine signed the Association Agreement with the EU plays a positive role in business development, in particular due to the abolition of taxes during the procurement of components abroad as of January 1, 2016.
“This increases our competitiveness compared to similar products in Poland and Romania,” she said.
Franklin McMahon in turn said that the planned increase in turnover to up to UAH 3 billion is an achievable target, because the capacity of the European furniture market is great and is estimated at EUR 1.6 billion nowadays.
“Our goal is to become a leading Ukrainian exporter,” he said.
Ukraine accounts for the smallest share in total production by all of the company’s factories, Lorraine McMahon added.
“However, we expect it will become the largest due to the implementation of the project for the expansion of production,” she said without elaborating on the size of these shares.
Answering a question from Interfax-Ukraine if the company plans to start selling furniture in Ukraine, Lorraine McMahon answered: “Yes, we do. This is a big country.” But she did not give any other details.
According to her, the company’s success in Ukraine is based on two factors ‒ “working hard” and “not to be afraid of communicating with partners in Europe.”
“When in 2014 the media constantly reported about war in Ukraine, our large customers suggested that we move production facilities to Poland or other countries, fearing the failure to meet contractual obligations. They did not understand that Rivne is far away from the combat zone. And one client from Finland even put forward a condition that the products should be manufactured in Poland, which made me very angry. I said: “You in Finland were at war with Russia in 1940 and should help Ukraine by buying furniture, rather than cease production. We have guaranteed to all customers in Europe that we would deliver products in any way, but if necessary, we could produce sofas in Lithuania,” she said.
Assessing the risks of work in Ukraine, she emphasized positive trends seen in the last two years, in particular the simplification of VAT collection.
“This does not mean that ideal conditions have already been created for investors and businesses, and the government has a lot to do in order to turn [Ukraine] into a country that attracts investment, this in particular concerns the liberalization of regulatory policy. We have never paid bribes here and have proven that it is possible to work this way,” she added.
As reported, in June 2012, the McMahon spouses opened a furniture factory, Morgan Furniture LLC, on the basis of the Rivnesilmash plant, which they acquired. They invested EUR 10.5 million in this production facility. Initially, the company employed 120 people.
The company is part of Home Group SA, a large European manufacturer of household goods, which is registered in Luxembourg.
The holding has production facilities in Poland, Estonia and Ukraine, with several thousand employees. It handles export and import operations with 22 countries in Europe and the rest of the world.
The McMahon spouses have been investing in Ukraine for more than a decade.
