The implementation of the project “Active Parks – Locations of Healthy Ukraine”, which provides for the installation of sports grounds in the courtyards, is carried out within the framework of the program of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky “Healthy Ukraine”, the website of the head of state reported on Tuesday.
In particular, the project envisages the creation of active park and sports ground locations in Ukrainian cities. About 100 “active parks” have already been opened in different parts of Ukraine, and about 600 more active locations will appear by the end of the year.
“Each ‘active park’ is equipped with QR codes, thanks to which the visitor has the opportunity to conduct a training session of any complexity, choosing his own trainer among pop stars, cinema stars, professional athletes, or conduct a training session with the President of Ukraine. Also, within the framework of the project, the installation of sports grounds, which will be in almost every courtyard, is starting – it is planned to build 10,000 of such facilities by the end of 2022,” the message says.
“This program of the President is aimed at all age categories and groups of the population. We want as many of our citizens as possible to be involved in regular sports. To improve the health of Ukrainians and reduce the rates of diseases caused by insufficient physical activity. To improve the quality and life expectancy of our people,” deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Tymoshenko said.
JSC Ukrzaliznytsia from October 10 resumes international railway communication with Poland.
According to the press service of the company, tickets for the Kyiv-Przemysl train will be available from October 1. They can be purchased on the company’s website, in its official chat bot, or at railway station ticket offices.
The Intercity+ train will run with carriages manufactured by Hyundai Rotem.
Earlier, Ukrzaliznytsia has already resumed international railway communication with Austria, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova.
The profits of ports should be returned to the cities in which they are located for the development of their infrastructure, Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Senkevych has told Interfax-Ukraine on the sidelines of the International Mayors Summit (IMS).
“Mykolaiv was a city of shipbuilders. Now the factories are standing idle, Mykolaiv has turned into a port city. However, we do not receive money from the port infrastructure to the local budget, except for personal income tax and land lease,” Senkevych said.
He recalled that last year the net profit of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority amounted to more than UAH 2.6 billion.
“I think that this amount needs to be “halved.” Half of the profits is to be divided between the port cities, in proportion to the transshipment of goods. Cities should receive a portion of what they have earned for the country. Then we will be able to restore our infrastructure,” he said.
In his opinion, it will be possible to talk about the restoration of production and the attraction of significant investments in shipbuilding after the adoption of a law on technology parks. Senkevych considers promising a mechanism for the establishment of tax credits and preferential rates by local governments.
“Roughly speaking: they built a plant for EUR 100 million, you are provided with a tax credit for 50% of this amount for five to seven years. Personal income tax and land tax are paid from this amount. It is profitable for the enterprise to work officially, pay high salaries to employees,” Senkevych said.
On October, 2nd and 3rd a show-program “The World of Horses” will take place in the «Kyivan Rus Park».
An interesting program with horse shows, live vocal, theatrical performances on historic theme, traditional Slavic funs will be waiting for the guests. Also the guests will be presented a historical horse breeds collection from all over the world in the Princely stable.
Ancient Kyiv opens at 10:00. The program starts at 13:30.
The ticket price: a full adult ticket – 200 UAH, for pensioners and students – 150 UAH, for schoolchildren – 80 UAH, for preschool children – for free.
Ancient Kyiv in the «Kyivan Rus Park» is located in Kyiv region, Obukhiv district, the vill. Kopachiv.
Details on the website www.parkkyivrus.com
The Interfax subscribers can save money with the “openbusiness-20” promo code for a 20%-discount for a full price adult ticket to the Principality of Kyivan Rus:
– by previous order by tel.: +38 044 461-99-37, +38 050 385-20-35
– or at the cash desk at the entrance to the «Kyivan Rus Park».
Similar to other European countries, Ukraine has declared its strive to complete shift to clean energy use. But on the way of the so-called “energy transition” natural gas will continue playing an important role for more than one decade – as a “transitional fuel”. In order not to be dependent on gas supplies, Ukraine has to increase its production, especially considering that the country has one of the largest gas reserves in Europe.
This and other important topics will be discussed at the Ukraine Gas Investment Congress, which starts on October, 20 in Kiev, involving business leaders from all around the world. On the eve of the Congress, Roman Abramovsky, Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, is telling about the situation in the industry and prospects in a blitz interview.
“The State is ready not only to support, but also to act as a guarantor of complex risky projects. And I would like our international partners and investors to hear this message,” emphasizes Mr.Abramovsky.
Roman Abramovsky, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine
Our intention to reduce the environmental impact is in line with the European Green Deal. We consider Ukraine as a member of the European community. Therefore, we share its aspirations, values and standards.
Our ministry acts as an engine and mouthpiece of changes in the ecosystem. This year, we have prepared proposals to reduce national greenhouse gas emissions by 65% compared with 1990 by 2030. The green course will have an impact on all economy sectors, including energy, manufacturing, transport, utilities, agriculture, forestry and waste management.
In particular, for the energy sector, there is a goal to increase power generation from renewable sources (solar and wind). Their share in power generation should grow to 17% in 2030 and up to 25% in 2035, which is provided for in the energy strategy of Ukraine. Ukraine is already one of the European leaders in the development of green energy generation and potential for further growth is far from exhausted.
Now we are also actively discussing the huge prospects of Ukraine in the area of hydrogen production and transmission. Namely, Naftogaz of Ukraine is already planning the first pilot projects in cooperation with Germany’s RWE.
Along with the development of green capabilities, we will decommission heat generating units with expired service life and provide for the gradual abandonment of coal mines. Of course, this will be accompanied by coal regions transformation programmes.
The energy transition cannot take place in an instant, especially in such a large, industrialised country with a high level of energy consumption. We will not be able to stop using fossil fuel completely, so like the rest of the world, we consider gas as a transitional energy carrier. In the next 10-15 years, its role will remain essential. First, as a replacement for coal that is significantly more harmful to the environment, and secondly, to provide room for manoeuvre.
Ukraine is lucky to have some of the largest gas fields in Europe, however at the same time, their potential was not fully utilised, and the country was losing both hydrocarbons and money. Since my appointment in 2020, I have initiated the development of large oil and gas bearing areas, where no exploration was previously carried out. In particular, I managed to restart the large Black Sea exploration project. At the end of 2020, Naftogaz of Ukraine obtained licenses for exploration of several dozen blocks. They have great potential and can open a new chapter for Ukraine’s oil and gas industry. This is evidenced by the success of our neighbours – Romania and Turkey, which have explored significant reserves in the Black Sea.
We have also started developing large onshore oil and gas fields that were previously inaccessible to investors, including the Yuzivske field, which is unique in size and potential.
The climate goals that we set for ourselves are ambitious and require huge resources. Therefore, over the next 10 years, Ukraine will need Euro102 billion of capital investment to finance decarbonisation projects.
Some of them will be provided by businesses. Companies should adjust their development plans to adapt to the Green Deal and decarbonisation. They need to understand that this is no longer a nice to have, but a mandatory requirement for their further sustainable development.
Part of the costs will be covered by the State. For example, by direct loans to businesses at acceptable interest rates so that businesses can introduce decarbonisation measures.
At the same time, we are very limited with our in-house resources, and I constantly emphasise this during meetings with foreign stakeholders, in particular, with the ambassadors of the G7 countries. Therefore, we count on external investment and are actively working to inform investors about the opportunities that await them in Ukraine. Compared to other European countries, the Ukrainian economy requires almost the largest investment. To attract attention of investors, we must offer almost turnkey projects with a guarantee of mutual benefit.
Today, Ukraine is improving the investment climate not with words, but with concrete actions. The State is ready not only to support, but also to act as a guarantor of complex risky projects. And I would like our international partners and investors to hear this message.
Without a doubt, it will be an outstanding event. Perhaps for the first time in many years, important issues of the energy industry and the energy transition will be considered with the involvement of the country’s leaders, international stakeholders and business representatives from more than 15 countries. This will be an opportunity to look at and assess risks and opportunities from different angles and from different perspectives.
I hope that that Ukraine Gas Investment Congress will become a platform for making important decisions, launching new projects and areas of cooperation.
Moreover, I hope that the Congress will help numerous investors and partners learn about the business opportunities that exist today in Ukraine, as well as what is being done to implement these opportunities as easily and quickly as possible.
Ukraine Gas Investment Congress received support from our Ministry and other government representatives. We will be happy to meet with all interested parties and will be open to discussions on topical issues.
The National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission (NEURC) has extended the ban on the import of electricity from the countries that are not members of the Energy Community, that is, from the Russian Federation and Belarus, for another month – until November 1 of this year. The regulator made the corresponding decision on September 29.
During the meeting, member of the commission Dmytro Kovalenko noted that this issue was considered at a meeting of the Anti-Crisis Energy Headquarters on Monday, September 27. It was supported by market participants, the Ministry of Energy, and government representatives, as well as Ukrenergo.
“At its headquarters, Ukrenergo noted that the situation is under control and the ban on electricity imports for a month will not cause problems with operational safety in the integrated power system of the country. There is already a protocol of the Anti-Crisis Headquarters to do this,” Kovalenko explained.
According to him, the decision to further extend the ban will be made on the basis of the operational situation, in particular with the accumulation of coal in Ukraine.
At the same time, following a proposal from Ukrenergo, the regulator, after the meeting, approved a resolution with wording allowing the transmission system operator in October to hold auctions to allocate capacity for imports from Russia and Belarus for November, in case the ban for this month is no longer imposed.
There is no text of the resolution on the NEURC website yet.
As reported, the NEURC established a ban on the import of electricity from the Russian Federation and Belarus by decree No. 853 dated May 26, its validity period expires on October 1. The powers of the regulator to limit the available bandwidth distributed at daily and monthly auctions in 2021 is enshrined in law of Ukraine No. 1396-IX regarding the certification of Ukrenergo.
