The state enterprise “Scientific-Production Association “Pavlograd Chemical Plant” (“NPO PHZ”, Dnipropetrovsk region) intends to build a new waste storage facility in Kamenskoye, Dnipropetrovsk region.
According to the documentation at the disposal of Interfax-Ukraine Agency, the proposed activities are defined by categories 1-3 “Installations for production or enrichment of nuclear fuel, facilities for reprocessing spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, facilities for disposal of radioactive waste, storage (over 10 years) or reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel or radioactive waste outside the facility”, and also by category 1-8.1 – “Operations in the field of hazardous waste management (storage, treatment, reprocessing, storage of spent nuclear fuel and radioactive waste)”.
In this case it is specified that the activity consists in responsible management of REM (radioactively contaminated materials – IF), formed as a result of previous activities at the State Enterprise Uranium Ore Treatment Plant, their safe removal and transportation to places of storage – Phase 3 (U4.02/20) of the EU program.
The construction timeline and the amount of funds for the project are not made public.
It is also reported that this project will be handled by Limited Liability Company (LLC) Zlato-Stroy.
NPO PHZ specializes, among other things, in development of technologies for production and recycling of explosive materials and products, production of explosives, solid rocket fuel mixtures and products with them, drilling and blasting operations. The enterprise provides utilization of various types of ammunition unsuitable for storage, including solid rocket fuel (SRF).
In Ukraine, the number of rabies cases among animals has increased, the Ministry of Health forecasts an increase in the number of animal bites and appeals for anti-rabies assistance.
This was reported by Health Minister Viktor Lyashko during a meeting of the state commission on technogenic and environmental safety and emergency situations (TES and emergencies).
“There are more and more cases of rabies among animals in the country. As a consequence, an increase in the number of animal bites and people seeking anti-rabies help is possible,” the Ministry of Health said on its website.
The Ministry notes that local authorities together with the State Service for Consumer Rights Protection must take urgent measures to vaccinate and capture animals.
Global food prices in June continued to decline, according to the latest review of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations).
The food price index averaged 122.3 points last month, down 1.4 percent from May and 23.4 percent from its peak in March 2022.
The Cereal Price Index was down 2.1 percent in June compared with May and 23.9 percent year-over-year. The decrease was due to a drop in world prices for all major grains. Feed grain fell in price most of all – by 3.4%.
The vegetable oil price index fell 2.4% from May to its lowest level since November 2020. “The continuing decline in the value of this index is due to a drop in world prices for palm and sunflower oils amid a slight increase in soybean and rapeseed oil prices,” the survey explains.
The index of prices for dairy products for the month decreased by 0.8%, in annual terms – by 22.2%. “The decrease registered in June is connected with decrease of the international prices for cheese, conditioned by availability of considerable export supply, first of all, in Western Europe against the background of seasonal increase of milk production and some reduction of retail sales,” is said in the review.
The meat price index remained virtually unchanged in June, while in annual terms it decreased by 6.4%. “The growth of international quotations for poultry and pork in June was almost completely leveled out by a decrease in quotations for beef and mutton, – explained the experts. – International prices for poultry continued to rise, which is explained by high import demand from East Asia. In turn, growth of pork prices is connected with remaining limited supply in leading producing regions, primarily in the European Union.
The June sugar price index was 3.2% lower than in May and was its first decline since an uninterrupted four-month rise. On an annualized basis, international quotations are still 29.7% higher. “The decline in international sugar prices recorded in June is mainly due to a good sugarcane crop in Brazil and reduced import demand globally, especially from China, the world’s second largest sugar importer,” the survey said.
The FAO Food Price Index is a weighted average of international prices of five major food commodity groups.
More than 216,000 workers in the technology industry worldwide have lost their jobs since the beginning of 2023, a study by Layoffs.fyi shows.
At the same time, the number of people laid off has increased more than eightfold since mid-January, MarketWatch notes.
The data suggest that the number of layoffs in the tech sector at the end of 2023 will be significantly higher than last year. For example, since the beginning of this year, 837 tech companies have laid off 216,328,000 people. Last year, 1,024,000 companies laid off 154,34,000 employees, according to Layoffs.fyi.
That included Niantic Inc. last week, creator of the popular game Pokemon Go, announcing 230 layoffs, and in late June, trading platform Robinhood Markets announced 150 job cuts.
Tech companies announcing layoffs this year include U.S. Amazon.com Inc., Electronic Arts, Roku Inc., Palantir Technologies, Twilio Inc., DocuSign Inc., Salesforce Inc., Zoom Video Communications, eBay, Dell Technologies, PayPal Holdings, International Business Machines, Intel Corp., Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc. as well as Germany’s SAP and Sweden’s Spotify Technology.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky began his visit to Slovakia.
“Next up is Slovakia. Important meetings in Bratislava with President Zuzana Chaputova, Prime Minister Ludovit Odor, National Council Chairman Boris Kollar,” he wrote Friday in his Telegram channel.
“Together with our reliable neighbor we talk about concrete defense support and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine, the NATO summit and the Peace Formula, bilateral cooperation, energy security,” Zelensky also wrote.
Global cereal production in 2023 could reach a record 2.819 billion tonnes, up 1.1 percent from 2022, according to a June FAO (United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization) survey.
Last month’s forecast was raised by 5.9 million tons. “The adjustment is almost entirely due to an improvement in the global wheat crop outlook. At the same time, despite the fact that the forecast of its harvest was raised by 0.9%, to 783.3 million tons, it is still 18.4 million tons below the record level of 2022,” – said in the review.
In particular, harvest estimates in the EU, Canada, Kazakhstan and Turkey were raised. “Expected production gains in these countries more than offset a significant reduction in the production forecast in Australia, where unusually dry weather conditions have led to lower crop views,” the review said.
The forage grain harvest forecast was “slightly lowered” to 1.512 billion tons. But that’s still 2.9% higher than 2022.
“The decrease is due to a downward revision in corn harvest forecasts in East Africa. That said, the improvement in the global barley production forecast is largely due to an adjustment in official estimates for Turkey, where the crop is expected to be higher than originally projected. However, it did not fully compensate for the drop in corn production,” the survey said.
The rice production forecast is “slightly adjusted upward” to 523.7 million tons due to improved crop views in Bangladesh and other countries along and south of the equator. Last year’s revised figures put the crop at 517.6 million tons.
