Business news from Ukraine

KYIV. July 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Representatives of the investment and IT markets have appealed to President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko for state support for the idea of setting up “a fund of funds” to invest in the existing and newly established venture capital funds and IT startups.

“It was suggested referring to the European Investment Fund, which invests in venture capital funds and other international institutions, implementing this model,” reads a statement of the Ukrainian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (UVCA) after a meeting with Poroshenko.

According to the UVCA, the creation of such a model of “a fund of funds” will stimulate the development of the national venture capital and IT industries and allow obtaining funds by 2,500 existing startups, of which, according to the association, only 66 attracted investments in the past year.

Participants in the meeting also expressed the idea of creating a state institute responsible for innovation policy in Ukraine following the form of the Office of the Chief Scientist in Israel.

In addition, IT business representatives asked to assist in simplifying conditions for obtaining working visa for foreign professionals, stopping undue pressure on IT enterprises by law enforcement agencies and creating favourable fiscal conditions for conducting innovative activity in Ukraine.

KYIV. July 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Antonov State Enterprise (Kyiv), a leading Ukrainian designer and manufacturer of aircraft, seeks to expand the circle of partners under the imports replacement program during its participation in Farnborough International Airshow Trade 2016 to be held on July 11 through July 17, 2016 near London, the press service of the enterprise has said.

“The main purpose of Antonov’s participation in the fair is searching for new partners and development of existing cooperation under the imports replacement program,” Antonov President Oleksandr Kotsiuba said.

Antonov will exhibit new transport An-178 aircraft with a carrying capacity of 18 tonnes at Farnborough 2016. The plane will take part in demo flights program and it will be presented at the static display. On July 7, 2016, multipurpose transport aircraft An−178 flew from Kyiv to Farnborough, Hampshire, the press service said.

Antonov will present other its modern programs in segments of transport, regional passenger and special-purpose aircraft.

According to Interfax-Ukraine’s information, Antonov is holding talks with European countries of the Alliance on joint development of the An-178 program.

KYIV. July 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – A doctrine of accelerated economic growth of Ukraine being drawn up by the Ukrainian Business Initiative with attraction of leading associations of businessmen could be a framework for large-scale investment assistance from the European Union (EU).

MP Serhiy Taruta gave the information to reporters. He took part in the consultations of German, Ukrainian members of parliament and experts who discussed guarantees for European investment in Ukraine at the Berlin office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

Taruta said that consultation with Germany aimed at determining top priority steps to improve investment climate in Ukraine.

“Our German colleagues first speak about the necessity of serious institutional reforms. These are reforms that would provide for independent judicial system, independent National Bank and the State Commission for Securities and the Stock Market, new antimonopoly and tax legislation. We, in return, told them about a project to change tax system drawn up by the Finance Ministry with the help of business associations,” he said.

Taruta said that attraction of large investment in Ukraine would be possible only when the military conflict in Donbas is settled.

Member of the German Bundestag Karl-Georg Wellmann said that the condition for serious injections into the Ukrainian economy is the implementation of reforms and guarantees that the money is not stolen.

KYIV. July 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine and Canada on Monday signed a free trade area agreement.

An Interfax-Ukraine correspondent has reported that the agreement was signed in the presence of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who is staying with a two-day visit in Kyiv.

“This extremely important document would raise trade and economic relations between our countries to the new level,” Kubiv wrote on his Facebook page before the signing of the agreement.

As reported, Ukraine and Canada signed an agreement on the completion of negotiations on the free trade area between the countries in July 2015. Then the document was translated into three official languages.

According to Ukraine’s State Statistics Service, Ukrainian goods exports to Canada last year plunged by 58.3%, to $30.16 million, while imports grew by 7.7%, to $206.24 million.

Exports of services from Ukraine to Canada decreased by 23.2% last year, to $67.85 million, while imports – by 27.4%, to $57.32 million.

KYIV. July 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on September 7 will decide on the provision of a $37 million senior secured loan to M.V. Cargo LLC to finance construction of a grain terminal at Yuzhny seaport (Odesa region).

The total cost of the project is $130 million.

The report to finance the project was published by the bank in October 2015.

U.S. Cargill, the Sea Port Authority of Ukraine and M.V. Cargo in August 2015 signed a trilateral memorandum of intent to implement an investment project at the Yuzhny seaport.

The parties formalized their intents with signing of an agreement on acquisition of 51% of shares in M.V. Cargo by Cargill.

M.V. Cargo acts as a developer and undertakes liabilities to build a marine grain handling terminal and berth 25 at the Yuzhny port. A capacity of the first phase of the terminal will be up to 5 million tonnes. The capacity will be increased by two or four million tonnes during the second project phase.