DAVOS. Jan 20 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Kharkiv Tractor Plant that resumed operations on January 6, 2017 after a many-month idle period, would soon produce the first tractor and by the end of February the plant seeks to produce 150 tractors a month, owner and President of DCH Group Oleksandr Yaroslavsky has said.
“We are making the first tractor soon and reach 100 tractors a month. By the end of February it would be 150 [tractors a month],” he told Interfax-Ukraine on the sidelines of the “Ukrainian Breakfast” in Davos organized the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.
Yaroslavsky said that the plant would mainly sell tractors in Iran and Turkey.
As for the plans to produce tractors in 2017, he said that it is planned to make around 2,000 tractors, taking into account 150 a month.
“My dream is to produce 3,500-4,000 tractors a year, but the plant was idle for 10 months. We have $8 million of loss. Everything is destroyed, links are broken and we are restoring everything in 24 hours,” he said.
He said that today over 3,000 people work at the enterprise, but more employees will be hired.
“We are hiring [the staff]. We have money and wages will be paid,” he said.
Yaroslavsky also said that relations with suppliers of spare parts and materials are to be restored. He said that the plant does not intend to look for new suppliers.
“We should simply restore links. These are 2,000 adjacent companies, including many foreign ones,” he said.
Asked about suppliers from Russia, he said that he will act in pursuance to Ukrainian law.
Commenting on the earlier announced possibility of producing goods for the defense and industrial complex, Yaroslavsky said that these products can be made only if there are orders.
“When we have orders, we will produce for the defense and industrial complex,” he said.
