Structure of import of services in the first half of 2020 (graphically).
The neighboring countries of Ukraine, in addition to Poland, Belarus and the Russian Federation, are in the “red” zone for COVID-19, according to data published on the website of the Ministry of Health as of December 24.
The “red” zone includes countries with an incidence rate per 100,000 population over the past 14 days higher than in Ukraine (374). There are 45 countries in total.
Of the closest neighbors of Ukraine, the “red” zone includes Slovakia (634,900 cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 population), Moldova (460,400), Romania (400,300) and Hungary (521,700).
Lithuania, Georgia, Slovenia, U.S., Montenegro, Sweden, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Great Britain, Turkey, Austria, Germany are also among the countries of the “red” zone.
The list of countries of the “green” zone includes, in particular, Italy, Israel, Belgium, France, Canada, Spain, Greece, Japan, India, and Egypt.
Of the closest neighbors of Ukraine, the “green” zone includes Belarus (279 cases per 100,000 of the population), the Russian Federation (206,900) and Poland (366,700).
According to preliminary results, Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) carried 1.787 million passengers from January to December 2020, which is four times less than the result for 2019 (about 8 million passengers).
The press service of the company reported that during the specified period, UIA operated about 17,000 regular and code-share flights, which is 72% less compared to the same indicator for 2019. The percentage of transit passengers amounted to 43% of the total traffic (486,000 passengers, 86% less).
The company also noted that in 2020 it transported more than 4,800 tonnes of cargo (15,000 tonnes in 2019) and 1,350 tonnes of mail (4,400 tonnes in 2019).
“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and government decisions to ban flights, the airline was forced to cancel thousands of flights and, as a result, the airline received thousands of requests for refunds. In the period from April to November 2020, some 85,861 passenger requests and returns in the amount of almost $ 22 million were processed. By this time, about 56,000 unprocessed applications for refunds were recorded. UIA employees carefully record each appeal and process them in turn,” UIA added.
The airline noted that during the lockdown, UIA optimized its work: it reduced its expenditures by three times, optimized its fleet and proportionally cut its staff by about 1,000 people.
Head of the Servant of the People faction David Arakhamia predicts that in February the Verkhovna Rada will be able to adopt draft law No. 3613 on democracy through a referendum at the second reading.
“We wanted to vote on the draft law on the referendum in December, but since there are 2,000 amendments, we need to work with their authors so that they either withdraw them or not insist on their consideration too much, that is, do not block the adoption of the law. Since it could be voted on in December according to the level of preparedness. I think we will accept it in February,” the politician told Interfax-Ukraine.
After this law, according to him, there will be more initiatives on electronic referendum, about local referendums, as well as the entire package of bills on democracy.
Arakhamia also believes that the Rada needs to develop an electronic voting model by the end of 2021, at least at the local level.
Etalon Corporation, one of the leading Ukrainian vehicle manufacturers, in 2021 introduces to the market a tram car of its own design TR 3100 based on the overhauled Czech tram Tatra T3, with the replacement of the bodywork with a new one on the basis of Tatra wheel bogies, Director General of Chernihiv Automobile Plant Andriy Savchenko said.
“The first sample has already been manufactured, it has advantages over competitors, it can be offered in several versions. Taking into account the fact that 14 Ukrainian cities have tram lines, and the depreciation of the rolling stock is more than 90%, we hope that the project will be successful. In early 2021 we will conduct final tests, and we are already negotiating the purchase with tram depots, ” Savchenko said at a press conference in Kyiv on Wednesday.
According to the information in the video presentation of the tram, released at the press conference, the model is offered in three versions, with the manufacture of a new bodywork with modern equipment and overhaul of bogies; with a new bodywork, equipment and purchase of new bogies; production of only the bodywork with varying degrees of equipment.
“Among tram depots, such a tram is relevant due to the depreciation of the fleet, its technological backwardness and high energy consumption, and the cost of a new tram is three times higher than that of an overhaul,” the presentation said.
The tram is almost 16 meters long, with a gross weight of 32 tonnes, and has a low floor area (in the middle of the cabin) with the possibility of wheelchair access. Traction drive is manufactured by the Informbusiness company (Moldova) with the ability to disconnect one of the bogies.
“Today Kyiv, Odesa, Zaporizhia and Vinnytsia are engaged in overhaul of trams in Ukraine. Dnipro purchases trams abroad and brings them here. And similar to our trams are made by the Polytechnoservice company, i.e. a new bodywork on overhauled bogies,” Savchenko said.
He did not disclose the price of the tram.
The corporation also presented a new fully low-floor trolleybus of a large class (12 meters) with an autonomous run of 20 km and dynamic recharging, with an asynchronous electric motor from a Latvian manufacturer (Riga Electric Machine Building Works), a traction drive and an autonomous running system of the Informbusiness company.
“Yes, we have abandoned traction motors produced by our Electrotyazhmash and switched to Riga ones, and as far as I know, our other manufacturers are also switching to them. They are much better [in quality] and the manufacturer provides a system of discounts,” Savchenko said.
At present, the design documentation has already been developed and the first sample has been manufactured.
Etalon Corporation unites 21 enterprises, including two automobile plants (in Boryspil and Chernihiv), as well as the Ukrainian Cardan plant, which produces cardan shafts, and Chernihiv Forging Plant. The main activity is bus and machine building, warehouse logistics.
Biopharmaceutical company Biopharma (Kyiv) plans to invest from $20 million to $23 million in the development of a network of plasma centers by 2025, Biopharma President Kostiantyn Yefymenko said.
“We plan to invest about $15 million in the next three years (in 2021, 2022 and 2023) in the development of blood plasma processing facilities at our site in Bila Tserkva. And we plan to invest in plasma centers during this time about $20-23 million by 2025,” he said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
Yefymenko said that the company already has seven plasma centers, including in Cherkasy, Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Konotop, Shostka and Sumy.
In 2021, Biopharma plans to build four more plasma centers in Kamianske, Mykolaiv and Poltava.
“As for the fourth plasma center […] we are now thinking whether it will be Kryvy Rih or Kherson. We intend to build plasma centers and blood centers in every regional center of Ukraine in five years,” Yefymenko said.
