Business news from Ukraine

UKRAINE’S VELTA RD TITAN WORKING ON NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR PROCESSING TITANIUM RAW MATERIALS

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Velta RD Titan, founded by Ukraine’s RD Titan Group and Velta Group Global, is developing an innovative method for the production of titanium dioxide i-TiO2, which will be an alternative to sulphate and chloride methods for getting pigment-grade titanium dioxide, which was discovered in the 20th century.
The Dnipro-based Velta production and commercial company said in a press release on Monday that Ukraine’s Velta RD Titan had presented the development of the new method as part of the TiO2 World Summit in Spain.
It notes that Velta RD Titan sees the potential of pigment dioxide as one of the important materials for the industrial revolution 4.0. White pigment is the basis for the production of paint and varnish, film materials, plastics, artificial leather, and a number of new developments.
“During the rapid technological development, more and more innovators pay attention to TiO2 products, but for the explosive growth of this material it is necessary to significantly reduce the cost of production. Our developments will reduce the cost and therefore expand the use of titanium products in both classical and innovative markets,” the company’s press service quoted Andriy Honchar, deputy director general and technical director at Velta RD Titan, as saying.
In addition, the statement notes that one of the mandatory criteria for i-TiO2 is maximum environmental friendliness in production.
The development plan with further approbation is designed for three years.

AROUND 300 COMPANIES FROM 13 COUNTRIES TO TAKE PART IN 14TH ARMS AND SECURITY EXHIBITION

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Around 300 companies from 13 countries will exhibit their products in the interests of the security and defense sector at the 14th specialized exhibition Arms and Security 2017 to be held in Kyiv on October 10 through October 13.
The organization committee of the exhibition told Interfax-Ukraine that along with Ukrainian companies, the United States, Turkey, Poland, Pakistan, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Israel, China and the United Arab Emirates have confirmed their participation in the exhibition.
Among foreign participants are Turkey’s Aselsan and Roketsan, U.S. Night Vision Devices, China’s BACEI, France’s Rockwell Collins France and Ouvry, Poland’s WB Electronics, Israel’s Opgal Optronic Industries, Italy’s CMS Industries, Germany’s Rohde & Shwarz, Pakistan’s DEPO and Heavy Industries Taxila and UAE’s International Armored Group.
Defense enterprises of the public and private segments of the defense industry, including enterprises of the Ukroboronprom State Concern and the League of Defense Enterprises of Ukraine, will show the potential of the Ukrainian defense and industrial complex at the exhibition, as well as famous sector flagships on the global market, as PJSC Motor Sich, AvtoKrAZ, Kuznia na Rybalskom, TASKO Corporation, Arsenal and Pivdenne (Yuzhnoye) Design Bureau.
The organization committee said that the main accents of the exhibition reflect the challenges facing the defense industry of Ukraine in the conditions of the long-term challenges of the country’s defense capability to ensure large-scale rearmament of the Armed Forces and the development of the Ukrainian defense market, the expansion of the international military and technical cooperation and the expansion of the presence of Ukrainian defense companies in the global arms market and the implementation of NATO standards in the production of defense products.

GUAM MEMBER COUNTRIES AGREE ON FREE-TRADE ZONE

TBILISI. Oct 11 (Interfax) – Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and Moldova, which constitute the GUAM Organization for Democracy and Economic Development, are set to create a free-trade zone in the region, Georgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze told reporters in Tbilisi.
“At this stage, we are working on agreements to implement a free-trade zone; the process is expected to be finalized by the end of the year,” Janelidze said, summarizing the results of the meeting of the GUAM foreign ministers held in Tbilisi on Sunday on the occasion of the organization’s 20th anniversary.
The free-trade zone is important not only for furthering trade and economic relations but also for boosting the transport corridor project, he said.
He underscored the significance of the transport corridor as a key priority of the GUAM countries. “We will do our best to make this transport corridor more efficient and attractive in the eyes of the world,” Janelidze said.
The corridor will be good for the region and ensure stability and development, he said. “Of course, we are inviting all interested states, both from the East and from the West, to cooperate,” he said.
The foreign ministers of Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and Moldova signed a statement at the end of their meeting declaring their readiness for further close cooperation in all areas.
GUAM is a regional organization established in 1997. Georgia is presiding at the organization this year.

TURKEY’S ASELSAN TO SUPPLY COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS FOR $43.6 MLN TO SPECTECHNOEXPORT

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Turkey’s Aselsan on October 9, 2017 signed a contract with a Ukrainian client on the acquisition of communications system for $43.635 million, according to a company report on the Istanbul Stock Exchange on Tuesday.
According to the report, the company will supply its systems in 2018.
As reported, on October 9, 2017, after a meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council between Ukraine and Turkey headed by President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Aselsan and state-owned foreign trade enterprise Spectechnoexport signed a contract on the acquisition of the communications system in Kyiv.
Aselsan is a leading defense company in Turkey. It is in the 100 top largest defense companies in the world.
The company increased sales by 35.5% in 2016, to TRY 3.768 billion and the company saw a 3.7-fold rise in net profit, to TRY 95 million.
Spectechnoexport is a leading Ukrainian special exporter. Since December 2010 the company has been part of the Ukroboronprom State Concern.

SOME 42 COMPANIES JOIN UNIC – BUSINESS OMBUDSMAN

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Some 42 Ukrainian and international companies have joined the Ukrainian Network of Integrity and Compliance (UNIC), Business Ombudsman of Ukraine Algirdas Semeta said at a roundtable last week.
Companies from 28 cities of Ukraine joined the network. The largest number of representatives of business society is from Kyiv, Lviv and Odesa, Inspector of the Business Ombudsman Council (BOC) Tetiana Kheruvimova said.
“Three more applications are being considered. We expect that by the end of the year over 100 companies would join us,” she said.
Member of the executive committee of UNIC Pavlo Verkhniansky said that the companies were checked if their public information about them is true.
“I can confirm [that during the check] several companies were red-labeled. Some of them submitted explanations later and cleared up the situation,” Semeta said.
As reported, the Business Ombudsman Council, with the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) presented the Ukrainian Network of Integrity and Compliance (UNIC), a new initiative for businesses that want to work transparently.

UKRAVTODOR INTENDS TO JOIN LVIV AND BUDAPEST WITH HIGHWAY

KYIV. Oct 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The State Automobile Roads Agency, also known as Ukravtodor, intends to implement a project of the new Lviv-Budapest highway via the Dyida checkpoint.
The press service of Ukravtodor reported that the agency jointly with the World Bank have started preparing a pre-feasibility study of the project on construction (reconstruction) of Lviv-Mukachevo first category road.
Ukravtodor said that the road will be the main artery for exporting Ukrainian goods to Eastern and Southern Europe and the transit corridor for international trade across Ukraine from Belarus and Baltic states to Eastern and Southern Europe. It will also ensure the stable connection of Zakarpattia region with other Ukrainian regions.
Now M-06 road from Mukachevo to Lviv passes mountains and it takes around three hours and a half to drive it. The new highway would reduce this time to two hours.
The pre-feasibility study will draw up the optimal concept of the new route with proposals to reconstruct sections of the road or building new ones and it will determine the cost of the project in line with the concept.
The new highway would connect Lviv with Hungary’s M-3 highway Budapest-Nyiregyhaza and it will become the main transport corridor between Ukraine and Hungary.
In the future, the new Lviv-Mukachevo highway will be connected with Slovakian R-2 highway. This would allow connecting it with the high-speed highway systems of Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Germany.