Exports of grain crops and flour since early 2017/18 agricultural year (July-June) as of March 14, 2018 reached 28.36 million tonnes, which is 2.83 million less than a year ago, the Agricultural Policy and Food Ministry of Ukraine has reported.
According to the report, a total of 28 million tonnes of grain was exported, including 13.44 million tonnes of wheat (530,000 tonnes less than a year ago), 10.33 million tonnes of corn (1.7 million tonnes less) and 4.04 million tonnes of barley (664,000 tonnes less).
Exports of rye accounted for 18,200 tonnes (18,100 tonnes more) and flour – 320,800 tonnes (54,000 tonnes more).
Canada’s Black Iron with assets in Ukraine has pointed out the increase in the attractiveness of the Shymanivske Iron Ore Project. The company said in a press release that since publishing the re-scoped Preliminary Economic Assessment, benchmark iron ore prices have rallied from $62 per tonne to $70 per tonne as of March 9, 2018.
The company said that based on prevailing iron ore prices and adjustments for product quality mainly related to iron content, Black Iron’s construction capital is estimated to have an estimated $1.4 billion Net Present Value (NPV), assuming 60% debt financing, 10% discount rate and an initial capital cost of $436 million. “Even under highly pessimistic long-term iron ore prices of $50 per tonne, the project generates Internal Rate of Return (IRR) in excess of 20%,” the press service said.
The company said that since releasing the revised project economics, the company has accelerated its efforts to secure the necessary land surface rights for the mine and plant. The leases related to three parcels of land that are required to begin construction are currently held within two Ukrainian government groups. The first parcel of land is held by the Kryvy Rih City Council who have been very supportive. Black Iron’s team and specialist consultants have completed more than 50% of the land allotment study to date.
The final parcel of land is held by Ukraine’s State Forestry, who have submitted the required documents for this land to be re-zoned and transferred to the Kryvy Rih City Council, who will in turn, lease the property to the company. The acquisition of these land packages will represent a significant milestone in beginning construction of the project and the company expects this process to be completed prior to year end. The company continues to pursue various financing options for construction of the project and has received significant interest from multiple groups which are currently conducting due diligence. The potential financiers include several multi billion-dollar steel mills, global trading houses and other mining companies.
Finance Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Danyliuk expects that the European Commission (EC) would approve macrofinancial assistance to Ukraine early autumn of this year. “The European Commission initiated the new program on February 28 and on March 9 the legislative proposal on the new program was finally approved. Now the proposal is in the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union… We are waiting for the final approval [of the program] early autumn. We will do our best to have it approved as soon as possible,” the finance minister said at a press conference in Kyiv.
He said that this concern the provision of EUR 1 billion. Danyliuk said that due to the non-implementation of the previous program the Finance Ministry had to replace insufficient payments in the budget at the end of 2017.
Earlier Danyliuk said that the key condition for the fourth macrofinancial assistance of the European Union to Ukraine is the launch of automated verification of e-declarations. “Meetings were held at the level of the Minister of Finance and the Prime Minister. The task to introduce this system before May 1 is clearly set,” the minister said.
The finance minister said that the program may contain additional conditions, but its key focus is the fight against corruption. “Now there is a dialogue with the EC. Sometime before May 1, they should coordinate all the issues and sign a memorandum,” he said.
Austria invested over $1.3 billion in the economy of Ukraine by 2018.
“Austria had invested $1.345 billion in the economy of Ukraine as of the end of last year, which was 3.4% of the total amount of foreign direct investment injected in our country’s economy,” the Ukrainian Cabinet’s press service said in a statement following a meeting between Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and Federal President of the Republic of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen.
During the meeting, Groysman stressed that European integration is Ukraine’s irreversible foreign policy choice, therefore Kyiv looks forward to intensifying the dialogue on a wide range of issues, taking into account Austria’s chairmanship of the EU in the second half of this year. The two officials touched on the situation in Donbas. “The annexation of the Crimea and the occupation of the east are illegal. This is a vivid violation of international law. Russia thinks everything will go unpunished. But we must prevent such opinions from existing,” the Cabinet’s press service quoted the Austrian president as saying.
As reported, Alexander Van der Bellen says Austrian investors are highly interested in Ukraine and underscores the need for a more intensified fight against corruption.
The Epicenter K Group, which was developing agricultural business under the Epicenter Agro brand in the past two years, plans to build two silos in Vapniarka and Vendychany (Vinnytsia region) with a grain storage capacity of 120,000 and 100,000 tonnes. “Five of our silos have a storage capacity of 360,000 tonnes, which is not enough for us. We will build a silo in Vinnytsia region with a capacity of 120,000 tonnes and in the town of Vendychany – 100,000 tonnes of grain, expand the Vinnytsia and Zakupne silos,” General Director of Epicenter K Petro Mykhailishyn said at a press conference devoted to the development strategy of Epicenter K in the Ukrainian agrarian market on Tuesday.
In addition, the group plans to invest in the purchase of three routes (one route consists of 50-60 grain wagons) in 2019 to provide access to the port elevators.
In the future, the group is planning the construction of a near port elevator.
The new agroholding with 110,000 hectares of land cultivates four main types of crops: winter wheat, sunflower, corn and winter rapeseed. In the crop rotation, corn occupies up to 50%, winter wheat – up to 25% depending on the region, sunflower – up to 25%, rapeseeds have a small share and it is grown mainly in the western region of the country. Epicenter Agro also has 6,000 pigs.
“We use loans to replenish working capital, purchase goods, and we send the funds that trade generates to agribusiness. We plan that agribusiness will come to self-sufficiency and profit-making in no more than two years,” the director general said. According to Mykhailishyn, in the village of Kalynivka (Kyiv region), a factory for production of ceramic tiles with an annual capacity of 12 million square meters is under construction.
