KYIV. June 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is ready to continue financing projects in Ukraine and the bank is waiting for successful reforms, head of the delegation and EBRD Director, the Netherlands, Mongolia, Macedonia and Armenia, Paul Vlaanderen said during a press conference at the EBRD representative office in Ukraine on June 5.
The EBRD is ready to provide assistance as long as the reforms are going in the right direction and the right projects are offered, and the EBRD is ready to invest, he said.
Vlaanderen said that the goal of the visit of the EBRD delegation was to assess the situation in Ukraine and analyze bank’s operations in the country. The delegation met Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk, Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko, National Bank of Ukraine Governor Valeriya Gontareva, MPs, and representatives of companies operating in Ukraine.
Vlaanderen pointed out the fight against corruption and the improving business climate in Ukraine. He said the judicial system and the functioning of the public management at all levels should be improved, as well as the operation of tax agencies.
He did not specify the concrete volume of the EBRD’s investment in Ukraine for 2015, adding that in 2013 it was EUR 820 million and in 2014 – over EUR 1.2 billion.
This level is acceptable and normal for the EBRD, he said.
Vlaanderen said that the economic sectors interesting for the EBRD in Ukraine are agriculture, energy, logistics, transport, pharmaceutical sector and IT.
The EBRD is the largest international financial investor in Ukraine. As of January 1, 2015, the Bank had a total cumulative commitment of EUR 10.4 billion in 344 projects in the country.
KYIV. June 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine and Canada now are holding talks over establishment of free trade area, Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatseniuk said.
“We’re holding talks over a free trade area between Ukraine and Canada. I hope that within three months we are to complete these talks,” the premier told the journalists following the meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Kyiv on Saturday.
He said that now the parties “are on a good stage of talks.”
“Investments from Canada to Ukraine and the access of the Ukrainian goods to the market of Canada – this is what has been also discussed at today’s talks with Harper,” the premier said.
KYIV. June 8 (Interfax) – Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has thanked Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for the extension of $1.5 billion in loan guarantees to Ukraine.
“I am grateful to Japan for extending loan guarantees amounting to $1.5 billion, which should enable us to ensure Ukraine’s financial stability,” Poroshenko said following negotiations with the Japanese prime minister on Saturday.
As reported, in May, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Valeriy Chaly has met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan Yasumasa Nagamine and discussed the provision of financial assistance to Ukraine.
“Chaly thanked the Japanese side for their large-scale financial assistance to Ukraine, in particular, the issue of $1.5 billion in credit assistance for implementing a number of projects in support of development. The official also welcomed Japan’s decision to provide Ukraine with an extra aid of $316.6 million to stabilize the national economy and support reforms,” the presidential website reported.
Moreover, Japan also decided to allocate $16.6 million for implementation of the projects on restoration of social-economic infrastructure of damaged Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
KYIV. June 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Japan confirmed a provision of a JPY 108 billion loan for the reconstruction of Bortnychi aeration station.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were present during the signing of the respective document in Kyiv on Saturday.
As reported, on February 11, 2015 representatives of PJSC Kyivvodokanal (Kyiv) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) said the signing of a loan agreement between the government of Ukraine and Japan as part of the reconstruction of Bortnychi aeration station is expected in early summer 2015.
The cost of preparation work Ukraine is obliged to fulfill before the start of the realization of the project and the signing of the agreement is assessed at UAH 125 million, of which UAH 5 million would be meant for a fitting of the European project to the Japanese technology standards financed in 2014.
KYIV. July 6 (Interfax-Ukraine) – PJSC AvtoKrAZ (Kremenchuk, Poltava region), the only Ukrainian producer of heavy vehicles, in January-June 2015 increased production by 20.5% from the same period in 2014, to 577 units.
According to the press service of the company, KrAZ sales in the first half of 2015 rose by 22.7%, to 519 units.
Of the total amount of vehicles produced exports accounted for 32%, the domestic market – 67%.
In addition to basic production, specifically trucks, in the first half of the year the plant shipped four semi-trailers and 13 trailers to the customer, while in January-June last year these products were not manufactured.
The report notes that in June the plant increased production by 30% from May this year and by 22.5% from June of the past year, to 125 vehicles, while in monetary terms production grew by 26.2%.
The press service also said that in late June the plant passed three mobile pumping units to Energoatom to be in keeping power units in a safe condition.
New KrAZ-63221 trucks are being manufactured in cooperation with Tital, a Ukrainian developer and manufacturer of fire and rescue vehicles and equipment.
The ultimate customer of these vehicles is Yuzhnoukrainsk nuclear power plant (Mykolaiv region).
KYIV. July 6 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian companies will be able to export duty-free goods worth about $200 million to the United States per year after the updating of the U.S. program, the Generalized System of Preferences, Minister of Economic Development and Trade Aivaras Abromavicius said at a press conference in Kyiv.
The minister said that Ukraine has not been involved in this program since 2013, but in the last year of Ukrainian participation, Ukrainian companies supplied goods worth $111 million under this program, and according to U.S.’ estimates Ukraine used a mere 65% of its potential.
“Based on this figure, we can calculate that duty-free goods supplies to the U.S. should amount to about $200 million,” he said.
As reported, the updated U.S. program of the Generalized System of Preferences, which allows duty-free exports of about 5,000 items of goods to the United States, will come into force from July 29.
