Antonov State Enterprise, which is part of Ukroboronprom state concern, at the end of last year demonstrated the first military transport aircraft An-178-100R No. 001 designed for flight certification tests. “Ukraine demonstrates its defense capability thanks to synergy, united efforts… The synergy of [the relevant parliamentary committee who fully support the Armed Forces, representatives of the command of the Armed Forces, the leadership of Ukroboronprom, the leadership of the plant and the Ministry of Defense] guarantees our exact victory with you, and it will not only be three such planes, but more,” Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov said at the plane’s roll-out ceremony in Kyiv on December 28.
Director of General Antonov State Enterprise Serhiy Bychkov said that the aircraft was transferred to a flight test base for ground and flight tests.
According to him, the state, through Ukreximbank, allocated an almost interest-free loan to the Antonov to manufacture the aircraft for the Ministry of Defense, and the company has already received about UAH 1 billion from the Ministry of Defense.
Bychkov said that this is the first aircraft of this generation in design, ergonomics and management, which was created in the post-Soviet space. “Such an aircraft in this class has not yet been on our territory, so it will require very careful, reliable testing in all parameters to make the first flight. I will not sign the acceptance act if I am not convinced that the first flight will be completely safe and reliable. Such a control system has not yet existed and does not exist. You are present at the opening of a new era. In the Soviet Union, there was no such aircraft, and now Russia certainly doesn’t have,” Bychkov said.
At the same time, the director general of the Antonov State Enterprise said that the auxiliary power unit for the aircraft was manufactured in Italy.
“There is not a single product, the equipment of which is Russian-made, I declare with all my authority… I have nothing to hide, nothing to deceive, especially from the Ministry of Defense,” he said.
An-178-100R is a next generation aircraft that can be used for the transportation of personnel, the delivery of weapons and light military equipment by landing and parachute methods, as well as for the transportation of goods. The aircraft is designed to transport up to 100 people in total, people in need of medical evacuation (40 people on standard sanitary stretchers, 38 people on the side seats, accompanied by 4 paratroopers), and paratroopers up to 86 people.
More than 30 Ukrainian enterprises take part in the An-178-100R program, which produced 177 types of components for this aircraft. In particular, for the first time in Ukraine Antonov, scientific and technical complex Ekran, PJSC FED, SOE Kharkiv Aggregate Design Bureau have developed and implemented a modern electronic control system for aircraft and a control system for wing mechanization. SOE Pivdenny (Yuzhny) Machine-Building Plant has launched the production of main landing gear. Foreign suppliers from Europe, the United States and Canada are also involved in the equipment of the aircraft.
Antonov received a state procurement order for the construction of three aircraft with the support of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the end of December 2020.
The airframe of the first of the three ordered aircraft was fully completed. The fuselage, wing, and tail unit of the second An-178-100R were assembled ahead of schedule.
International freight traffic with Kazakhstan is operating as normal, head of Ukrzaliznytsia Oleksandr Kamyshin has said.
“Now there are 219 Ukrainian freight cars in Kazakhstan. This is not a lot, about 0.1% of the total fleet of Ukrainian freight cars. Of these, 90 cars are owned by Ukrzaliznytsia and another 139 are private freight cars. All of them normally move through the KTZ (Kazakhstan Railways, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy) network and, I hope, will soon return to Ukraine in the same way, in a normal mode,” he wrote on Telegram.
He noted that the railways of Kazakhstan are an important partner for Ukrzaliznytsia.
“This is about 2 million tonnes of freight traffic per year, which is transported by rail between Kazakhstan and Ukraine. Almost half of the total freight traffic is Kazakh coal, which is now so necessary for Ukraine,” Kamyshin wrote.
According to him, the employees of KTZ ensure the stable operation of the railway in the current difficult circumstances.
“Freight traffic is working as usual. Confirmation of this is a freight train that left China on December 31 and arrived at TIS today. Interstate joints are operating normally. The dispatching office providing transportation activities operates around the clock. Passenger traffic is temporarily restricted in three western regions,” the head of Ukrzaliznytsia said.
Liz Truss, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development of the United Kingdom, plans to pay a working visit to Kyiv in January 2022. She stated this speaking in the UK Parliament on Thursday.
The British government’s press office said that she is looking forward to visiting Kyiv later this month.
The Ministry of Energy of Ukraine has terminated the powers of a member of the supervisory board of the National Power Company Ukrenergo – the representative of the state Mykhailo Ilnytsky, having appointed Oleksandr Baraniuk instead.
According to Ukrenergo’s report in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission, the order of the Ministry of Energy terminates the powers of Ilnytsky, who was in this position for 28 days. On January 5 of this year, Baraniuk was appointed a member of the Supervisory Board effective from January 6, for a period of three years.
Kyiv-based market-mall Darynok will invest over UAH 30 million in renovation in 2022, the company’s press service reported.
In 2022, Darynok marks the 20th anniversary. Today it is one of the leading retail properties with 17,000 jobs and more than 50,000 daily visitors. According to the press service, in 2021, the Darynok market-mall was visited by 11.6 million people, which is 12% more than a year earlier. Due to the existing concept of retailtainment and renovation, it plans to mark traffic growth of 10% per year and 30% over the next five years.
Among the strategic directions of business development, the team singles out expanding the target audience (focusing on the business segment with workshops and master classes, events for students, job fairs, etc.), increasing coverage in digital platforms, introducing innovative IT technologies for retail, further development of corporate and social responsibility.
Darynok’s plans for 2022 are to open a food court on a street with a total area of 2,905 square meters. According to market research data, about 34% of the audience regularly eats at the food court, and 68% – periodically. The open food court in street-food style will feature up to ten different kitchens, bars, a two-story boarding area, and a separate event area.
According to the press service, for the New Year holidays Darynok together with the art-plant Platforma opened a skating rink with a total area of 1,200 square meters: visitors will be delighted with ice shows and DJ sets.
Among the achievements of 2021, the Darynok team noted the signing of an agreement with 25 new operators and the opening of a children’s entertainment center Fly Park, with a total area of 2,200 square meters. Among the tenants who strengthened tenant-mix in 2021 are the brands Arber, Klaros, Fromus, Trend, Farmacia, Billerbek, Blest Kids, Snite, Table and Chair, Med Lab, and Fly Park. Thanks to the signing of new lease agreements, Darynok managed to reduce the vacancy rate: in 2022, the market mall enters with a figure of 2% compared to 5% a year earlier.
The Darynok market-mall is a symbiosis of a shopping center and a traditional market. On a total area of 68,000 square meters, there are over 3,000 retail outlets, including a wedding gallery, a floor of children’s stores, two floors of furniture, a leather and fur outerwear department, and the Platforma Office Club coworking space from Coworking Platforma. There is also a parking for 1,600 cars.
The composition of the first Ukrainian national delegation to South by Southwest (SXSW) 2022 will be determined at a startup competition, co-director of Startup Grind Kyiv Hannah Zenn has told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to Zenn, the six winning startups will present their product as part of the Ukrainian Corner at SXSW 2022, which will be held in Austin, Texas from March 11 to March 20, 2022.
The first official delegation to SXSW from Ukraine became possible thanks to the USAID’s Competitive Economy Program (CEP) and their close cooperation with the Ukrainian Startup Fund, Startup Grind Kyiv and Western NIS Enterprise Fund, and with the assistance of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and the Council of Exporters and Investors under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We are organizing the first mission for Ukrainian startups in Austin, Texas. The Ukrainian corner at the international exhibition SXSW, where investors and partners come for new fresh innovative ideas, will show the synergy of creative industries in the context of expanding opportunities and the presence of Ukrainian startups in the world,” Deputy Chief of Party at USAID Competitive Economy Program in Ukraine (CEP) Olesya Zaluska said.
Director of the Ukrainian Startup Fund Pavlo Kartashov expressed his satisfaction that Ukraine will present its achievements and visions to the world for the first time at this large-scale event. “The program of innovative vouchers of the Ukrainian Startup Fund operates, first of all, for such initiatives – to show the victories of Ukrainian startups in the international arena and to support them in further scaling,” he said.
SXSW is an international event held since 1987 in the middle of March in Austin, Texas, the United States. The event brings together leaders from all over the world to meet and discuss topical issues. In total, the event is attended by over 70,000 people and about 10,000 companies. SXSW guests include Elon Musk, Barack Obama, Mark Cuban and others. It covers many tracks of programming – SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSWedu, SXSW Eco, etc. SXSW Interactive focuses on new technologies, its program includes an exhibition, talks, group meetings, and a startup accelerator. SXSW Interactive has been arguably the largest festival of its kind since 2007, according to co-founder Louis Black.
To participate in the competition, Ukrainian applicants shall submit an application before January 10, 2022 (https://usf.com.ua/sxsw-2022/). Potential participants shall be ready to demonstrate a product or service (layout/prototype/etc.); have an English speaking founder (or an English speaking representative).
A startup shall also meet the requirements for participation in the SXSW 2022 program, in particular, be registered as a Ukrainian legal entity or have at least one founder – an individual entrepreneur in Ukraine; his team shall be located in Ukraine in whole or in part; use technologies created in Ukraine and continue their R&D development in Ukraine; position himself or herself as Ukrainian in the public field; have paying customers and good customer retention and/or acquisition dynamics; institutional readiness to attract investment: preliminary investment rounds of famous angels and/or funds, etc.
The submitted applications will be checked for compliance with the terms of the competition. Startups that have passed internal compliance will participate in the Pitch on January 21, 2022. Selected by the jury, six startups will take part in SXSW 2022. Partners of the initiative will cover the winners’ costs for the cost of the stand, conference tickets, accommodation, and flights within the framework of an innovative voucher from USF in the amount of $10,000.
“SG Kyiv is already known for organizing the first official Ukrainian delegation of startups to the conference in Silicon Valley SG Global in 2020. This year we open doors for Ukrainian startups and ecosystems to SXSW. This is a unique access to the U.S. business environment and a new innovation center – Texas, as well as the opportunity to find partners and investors among the largest funds and corporations in the world,” Chapter Director of Startup Grind Kyiv Kateryna Degtyar said.
USAID’s Competitive Economy Program supports startups and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to improve their competitiveness in the domestic and international markets, helps develop a simplified and transparent business climate, and provides Ukrainian companies with opportunities to take advantage of the international trade.
Ukrainian Startup Fund (USF) is a state fund created on the initiative of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. For two years of USF work, more than 240 Ukrainian startups at the seed or pre-seed stage received grant funding, the total amount of funding reached more than $6.3 million.
Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF) is a $150 million regional fund, a pioneer in Ukraine and Moldova with over 25 years of successful experience in investing in small and medium-sized companies. WNISEF was funded by the U.S. government via the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Since its inception, WNISEF’s cumulative investments total over $186 million to 130 companies employing around 26,000 people and made it possible to unlock $2.2 billion for companies in Ukraine and Moldova. In 2015 WNISEF has launched a $35 million legacy program focused on export promotion, local economic development, impact investing and economic leadership.
Startup Grind Kyiv is the official representative of Startup Grind (the community numbers about 5 million of the best entrepreneurs in the world); it has been holding regular events in Kyiv since 2014.
