Nibulon JV LLC (Mykolaiv), one of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, has signed an agreement with German machinery manufacturer CLAAS to purchase 29 units of agricultural machinery at the AGRITECHNICA-2023 exhibition in Hannover.
“The new equipment will allow Nibulon’s agricultural production department to start the spring field work of the 2024 season with new innovative machinery. The company expects that this will allow it to carry out basic technological operations in a short time and save fuel and other resources,” the company wrote on Facebook.
According to the report, CLAAS will supply Nibulon with 10 combines, 15 tractors, and 4 telescopic handlers.
The equipment is being updated as part of the project to reform the business and improve production technology initiated by Nibulon’s agricultural department in 2023. The agronomy division intends to reduce production costs and reach a competitive level with other agricultural producers. This course involves reducing the number of equipment while increasing the efficiency and accuracy of operations.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a capacity for simultaneous storage of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries.
In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses from Russia’s full-scale military invasion have reached $400 million. The grain trader is currently operating at 30% of capacity and has set up a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines.
“Metinvest reduced steel production by 43% year-on-year to 1.531 million tons in January-September this year, according to a press release from the parent company Metinvest B.V. on Wednesday, following the results of the third quarter and nine months of this year.
During this period, pig iron production decreased by 46% to 1.344 million tons, coke production by 31% to 948 thousand tons, and commercial coke production increased by 7% to 644 thousand tons.
At the same time, it is noted that due to the outbreak of Russia’s large-scale military aggression against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Metinvest decided to suspend production at a number of its enterprises in Mariupol, Avdiivka and Zaporizhzhia, including Azovstal, Ilyich Iron and Steel Works of Mariupol, Avdiivka Coke and Zaporizhzhia Coke. Later, Zaporizhzhia-based enterprises of the Group resumed production.
As of today, the Group’s Ukrainian enterprises, except for those located in Mariupol and Avdiivka, continue to operate at varying levels of utilization, taking into account security, electricity supply, logistics and economic factors.
In the third quarter of 2023, pig iron production decreased by 10% quarter-on-quarter to 425 thousand tons, mainly due to the shutdown of blast furnace No. 1 at Kametstal for a scheduled overhaul. As a result, steel production decreased by 8% to 499 thousand tons. Over the first nine months of the year, the Group’s iron and steel production decreased by 46% and 43%. The suspension of production at the Mariupol plants from the end of February 2022 was partially offset by volumes at Kametstal.
In the third quarter, the Group produced 159 thousand tonnes of semi-finished products, down 27% quarter-on-quarter, mainly due to higher domestic consumption at downstream stages.
In addition, in the first nine months of 2023, the output of semi-finished products decreased by 26% to 657 thousand tons due to the absence of production at Mariupol plants since the end of February 2022. This was partially offset by an increase in the production of commercial billets at Kametstal’s facilities.
In the third quarter, Metinvest’s output of finished products decreased by 3% quarter-on-quarter to 583 thousand tons. At the same time, flat products production decreased by 27 thousand tons to 267 thousand tons due to a reduction in the order book at the rolling mills in Italy and the UK. This was partially offset by an increase in galvanized cold-rolled coil production at Unisteel Ukraine as the fourth inductor was restarted after being shut down for overhaul in the second quarter.
At the same time, long products production increased by 9 thousand tons to 316 thousand tons, mainly due to an increase in the rebar order book at Kametstal.
In the first nine months of 2023, finished product output fell by 26% to 1.728 million tons. At the same time, flat products production decreased by 666 thousand tons to 847 thousand tons due to the shutdown of Mariupol’s plants. This was partially offset by an increase in hot-rolled plates production at re-rolling mills in Italy and the UK as third-party slab supplies were restored.
In turn, long products output increased by 72 thousand tonnes to 881 thousand tonnes due to the stabilization of billet production at Kametstal and normalization of supplies to Promet Steel in Bulgaria.
There was no output of rail and pipe products as they were produced at Mariupol-based plants.
Coke production in the third quarter decreased by 9% quarter-on-quarter to 299 thousand tons, mainly due to lower coke demand at Kametstal. Over the first nine months of the year, this figure fell by 31% to 948 thousand tons due to the suspension of production at Azovstal and Avdiivka Coke.
As reported earlier, in January-March 2023, Metinvest reduced steel production by 75% compared to the same period in 2022 to 491 thousand tons, pig iron production also by 75% to 448 thousand tons, and coke production by 59% to 318 thousand tons, including a 1% increase in commercial coke production to 213 thousand tons.
In the first half of 2023, the Group reduced steel production by 57% year-on-year to 1.032 million tonnes, pig iron by 59% to 918 thousand tonnes, and coke by 40% to 648 thousand tonnes, including a 7% increase in commercial coke production to 429 thousand tonnes.
“In 2022, Metinvest decreased steel production by 69% compared to 2021, to 2.918 million tons, pig iron by 72%, to 2.743 million tons, coke by 64%, to 1.653 million tons, including commercial coke by 49%, to 811 thousand tons.
“Metinvest comprises mining and metallurgical enterprises located in Ukraine, Europe and the USA.
Metinvest’s major shareholders are SCM Group (71.24%) and Smart Holding (23.76%), which jointly manage the company.
Metinvest Holding LLC is the management company of Metinvest Group.
Benchmark oil prices are rising moderately on Wednesday morning, as investors assess US inflation data and await the weekly report on fuel stocks in the country.
The price of January futures for Brent on the London ICE Futures exchange at 7:10 a.m. is $82.7 per barrel, which is $0.23 (0.28%) higher than at the close of the previous session. On Tuesday, these contracts fell by 5 cents to $82.47 per barrel.
Quotes for December futures for WTI in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) by this time increased by $0.18 (0.23%) to $78.44 per barrel. At the end of the previous session, they remained unchanged at $78.26 per barrel.
The rate of growth of consumer prices (CPI) in the United States in October decreased to 3.2% in annual terms from 3.7% in September, the Labor Department reported. Core inflation (CPI Core), which excludes food and energy prices, slowed to 4% from 4.1% a month earlier. The consensus forecast of experts surveyed by Trading Economics envisaged a weakening of inflation to 3.3% and a continued growth rate of the CPI Core index at 4.1%.
Data on inflation dynamics is closely monitored by the Federal Reserve System (FRS) when making decisions on monetary policy.
Meanwhile, the day before, the International Energy Agency raised its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2023 by 113 thousand barrels per day (bpd) to 2.367 million bpd. Thus, the organization expects global demand to reach 101.96 million bpd this year.
Market participants are also assessing signals about changes in energy reserves in the United States.
According to the American Petroleum Institute (API), last week the US stocks increased by 1.34 million barrels. A week earlier, reserves jumped by 11.9 million barrels.
Official data from the Energy Ministry will be published at 16:30 on Wednesday, and in two weeks at once. Analysts surveyed by Trading Economics predict that they will show an increase in oil reserves by 1.8 million barrels.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare of India has included Ukraine in the list of countries that do not treat grain crops with fumigants containing methyl bromide (CH3Br), the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection reported, citing the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of India.
“This will make it possible to exempt domestic exporters from paying additional payments (penalties) stipulated by local legislation and export grain cargoes during disinfection with aluminum phosphide-based preparations,” the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection said in a statement on Tuesday.
The agency clarified that Ukrainian grain for export to India should be disinfected with aluminum phosphide-based products only. It is recalled that work to resume exports of Ukrainian grain to India has been underway since 2016.
Volodymyr Lavrenchuk, Head of the Ukrainian office of NEQSOL Holding, who headed Ukraine’s largest foreign bank, Raiffeisen Bank, in 2005-2019, has become the head of the Supervisory Board of state-owned Oschadbank (Kyiv), where he became an independent member in July this year following a government decision three months earlier.
“The renewed Supervisory Board of Oschadbank has started its work. At its first meeting, it elected Volodymyr Lavrenchuk as chairman,” the bank said in a statement on Tuesday.
It is specified that Lavrenchuk has 36 years of experience in the banking sector, including 27 years in the top management of Oschadbank and Raiffeisen Bank, and since 2020 he has been the head of the Ukrainian office of NEQSOL Holding with a focus on investment and portfolio management and a member of the Supervisory Board of Vodafone Ukraine.
According to the release, Lavrenchuk also chaired the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, while the Risk and Compliance Committee was chaired by independent Supervisory Board member Elizabeth Nelson, who was Vice President of Risk Management and Compliance, Chief Risk Officer at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in 2012-2019.
Her colleague Juan Enrique Pérez Calota chaired the Audit Committee, while Oleksandr Rodnyansky, a member of the Supervisory Board and representative of the President of Ukraine, became the chairman of the Strategy and Transformation Committee.
Oschad reminded that as a result of the renewal of the Supervisory Board’s composition among independent members provided for by the current legislation, four financial market experts – Michal Krupinski, Lavrenchuk, Nelson and Philip Heasley – joined the Supervisory Board, while Perez Kalota and Anton Pyatigin retained their seats on the Supervisory Board.
In addition, the Supervisory Board also includes three government representatives – Yulia Pashko from the Verkhovna Rada Committee, Rosa Tapanova from the Cabinet of Ministers, and Rodnyansky from the President of Ukraine.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, as of September 1, 2023, Oschadbank ranked second in terms of total assets (UAH 337.99 billion) among the 64 operating banks in the country and first in terms of the number of branches – 1182.
In January-June 2023, PJSC Ukrnafta made a net profit of UAH 14.1 billion, the company’s CEO Sergiy Koretsky posted on Facebook on Tuesday morning.
“Net profit for the first half of 2023 amounted to UAH 14.1 billion. At the moment, net profit has exceeded UAH 20 billion. This is the net profit from business activities, the result after paying all taxes, including income tax. There were no changes in accounting policies,” he said.
According to him, the company’s projected revenue for the current year will be UAH 95 billion, which is twice the average annual revenue over the past decade.
“And the rise in oil prices has nothing to do with it. It’s a transparent market work without intermediaries,” emphasized Koretsky.
The Ukrnafta CEO also clarified that the company paid UAH 12.3 billion in taxes in the first half of the year, including UAH 3.3 billion in income tax. The plan for tax payments for the whole of 2023 is UAH 27 billion, including about UAH 5 billion of income tax.
“For example, over the past 10 years, we have paid UAH 12 billion in income tax. Accordingly, in 2023 alone, the company will transfer five times more money to the state budget than it was on average in 2012-2021,” he wrote.
At the same time, based on the results of its business activities this year, the company is preparing to pay at least UAH 6 billion in dividends if the shareholders’ meeting decides to pay a minimum rate of 30%, which even then will be more than the total result of the last 10 years.
“Ukrnafta is Ukraine’s largest oil producer and operator of a national network of 537 filling stations, of which 456 are in operation. The company is implementing a comprehensive program to restore operations and update the format of its filling stations. Since February 2023, Ukrnafta has been issuing its own fuel coupons and NAFTAKarta cards, which are sold to legal entities and individuals through Ukrnafta-Postach LLC.
Ukrnafta’s largest shareholder is Naftogaz of Ukraine with a 50%+1 share. On November 5, 2022, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine decided to transfer to the state a share of corporate rights of the company owned by private owners, which is currently managed by the Ministry of Defense. In November 2022, Serhiy Koretskyi was appointed director of the company.
