KYIV. Feb 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – U.S.-based Orbital ATK, the world’s leader in aerospace and defense industries, has signed an eight-year contract worth about $1.5 billion with NASA to implement from 2019 six commercial cargo flights to the International Space Station (ISS) using Antares carrier rockets created and produced in cooperation with Ukraine.
According to an official report from the company, within the framework of the contract signed after a tender, Orbital ATK for cargo flights to the ISS in addition to upgraded Antares carrier rockets could also use Atlas-5 carrier rockets of United Launch Alliance (the United States).
In addition, the contract includes an option for the execution in 2021-2024 of additional cargo flights “on the basis of operational requirements for the ISS.” The amount of the option is not specified.
According to a contract worth $1.9 billion between NASA and Orbital Science Corp., signed in 2008, the U.S. company should by the end of 2016 provide eight regular cargo flights to the ISS using Antares carrier rockets and the Cygnus spacecraft built in cooperation with Thales Alenia Space and deliver goods with a total weight of 20 tonnes. Ukraine’s Pivdenne design bureau and Pivdenmash (Dnipropetrovsk) in the framework of a long-term contract (up to 2019), signed with Orbital Science Corp. in 2008, provided the development and manufacture of the first stage of the Antares carrier rocket.
KYIV. Feb 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine at the beginning of August 2016 will launch new technical regulations for some goods, packed by weight and volume, developed in the framework of bringing the legislation in compliance with EU requirements.
This is stipulated in Cabinet resolution No. 1193 of December 16, 2015, published in the Uriadovy Kurier newspaper, which determines that the technical regulations come into force after six months from the date of publication.
The technical regulations concern goods, having a mass of at least 5 g (or ml) and not more than 10 kg (or liter). Products are considered to be packed if they are placed in packaging of any origin in the absence of a buyer, and the amount of goods indicated on the packaging cannot be changed without opening or damaging the package.
The government established that packaged goods, which were put into circulation or have been in the market for less than two years before the entry into force of the new technical regulations, are not subject to the restrictions and prohibitions in connection with the non-compliance with the requirements.
KYIV. Feb 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Lauffer Group plans to launch over 12 new outlets of own retail chain in Kharkiv and 20 in Odesa in 2016, and total investment will reach UAH 14 million.
The company said in a press release on Monday that this year the existing facilities of the branded outlets under the Saltovsky trademark in Kharkiv will be reconstructed and investment will total over UAH 4 million.
Head of Retail Business at Lauffer Group Oleksandr Moshurovsky said that new Zefir stores in Odesa and Kharkiv sell a wide range of food (up to 800 items).
In 2015, around UAH 4.25 million was invested in opening of shops: nine in Odesa, five in Kharkiv and 12 in Dnipropetrovsk. Investment into one shop was from UAH 250,000 to UAH 400,000.
Lauffer is one of the largest Ukrainian business groups in the sector of processing agricultural products and food production, which has been operating in Ukraine for 14 years. It includes about 100 enterprises specializing in production of flour, bakery goods, fat, canned food and so on.
KYIV. Feb 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Ukrainian state concern Ukroboronprom are satisfied with new agreements reached with Germany’s Deutz AG to supply engines for new Ukrainian armored vehicles: a batch of DEUTZ BF 4M 1013 FC 190 hp engines will be shipped by German partners to Ukraine at the special price, the press service of the concern reported on Monday.
According to the report, after complicated and long negotiations between Ukroboronprom and Deutz AG the sides reached an agreement to supply a batch of engines at the price that allows Ukraine to save around UAH 25 million (EUR 862,000, the official NBU’s exchange rate as of February 8 UAH 29.0277/EUR 1). Other details of the contract are not disclosed.
The press service said that these engines will be installed on BTR-3, BTR-4 and armored vehicles Dozor-B.
KYIV. Feb 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine’s Minister of Infrastructure Andriy Pyvovarsky expects that the full commercial operation of a new container train on the so-called New Silk Road will start in March, he said this in the parliament during “an hour of questions to the government.”
Pyvovarsky noted the train should come back to Ukraine by the end of February. Then “all logistically weak points” will be worked on, a relevant regulatory document will be signed, which will make it possible to run the train in commercial use.
“A final protocol will be signed in Baku somewhere on February 20, which will settle all the technical problems, bottlenecks, and we can say that from March the train will start running as usual,” the minister said.
According to him, the main operator of this route will be Lisky transport service center (part of PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia). The company must do everything possible to make the route commercially successful.
KYIV. Feb 8 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Public joint-stock company State Food-Grain Corporation in H1 2015/16 agricultural year (July 2015-June 2016) exported around 1.5 million tonnes of grain, the company’s press service has reported, referring to the director of the logistics department Dmytro Shmokarev.
“The result was achieved thanks to the centralized work of the foreign economic department and purchase and logistics department and thanks to new rules introduced,” he said.
Among key changes in logistics is the creation of the transport and shipping servicing department that allows both shipping products using own forces and provide services to bailors.
“In the period since November 2015 over 100,000 tonnes of grain has been shipped using this,” he said.
The electronic document turnover system is being introduced in the corporation.
Shmokarev’s division also worked to return dispatch bonuses worth over $500,000 for the previous periods.
In August 2010, the government decided to create the State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine. The corporation has a chain of branches, comprised of grain storage facilities, flourmills, fodder factories and a cereals factory. The 53 subdivisions of the corporation can store a total of 3.75 million tonnes of grain, which includes the grain handling capacities of Odesa and Mykolaiv ports of around 2.5 million tonnes of grain cargo per year.
