Business news from Ukraine

KYIV. Sept 25 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has discussed the privatization of state-run enterprises with representatives of international financial institutions and diplomatic missions in Ukraine.

“Special attention was paid to the privatization of state-run enterprises in Ukraine, the provision of its openness, transparency and competitiveness. The Ukrainian prime minister asked representatives of international society in Ukraine to support the privatization process with the relevant expert evaluation,” the press service of the Ukrainian government has reported.

Yatseniuk met Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine Jan Tombinski, Chief of International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission to Ukraine Nikolay Gueorguiev, IMF Resident Representative in Ukraine Jerome Vacher, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Director for Ukraine Sevki Acuner, International Finance Corporation (IFC) Country Head in Ukraine and Belarus Rufat Alimardanov, top managers of the U.S. Agency for International Development and representatives of the U.S. Embassy to Ukraine in Kyiv on Thursday.

The participants of the meeting exchanged opinions on the urgent tasks of privatization, top-priority measures to improve the management of state-owned facilities, the creation of legal preconditions to accelerate the privatization process, and how to ensure that privatized enterprises function efficiently.

KYIV. Sept 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Infrastructure Ministry plans to spend EUR 100 million released under a credit agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), on road maintenance in the western regions of Ukraine, the ministry’s press service reported on Wednesday.

“Under preliminary findings, the total volume of released funds under a credit agreement with EBRD could be up to EUR 100 million. The funds have been saved due to a change to the project structure, currency rate differences, as well as a high competitiveness at open tenders which gave us an opportunity to sign the contractor’s agreements for less than expected,” the press service said.

According to the ministry, money will be allocated to maintain the H09 Mukacheve-Rakhiv-Bohorodchany-Ivano-Frankivsk-Rohatyn-Lviv and H13 Lviv-Sambir-Uzhgorod roads.

H09 is a strategic transit highway which provides a transport links Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Poland. Maintenance of H13 is crucial to maintain tourist numbers and access to recreation areas in the Carpathian region.

KYIV. Sept 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Antonov State Enterprise, part of Ukroboronprom State Concern (Kyiv), and Poland’s WB Electronics SA are working on cooperation plans as part of a program to produce unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The memorandum of understanding was signed on Tuesday at the 12th International Trade Fair Arms and Security 2015 by Antonov acting President Mykhailo Hvozdev and Vice President and Chief Designer of Flytronic, which is part of WB Electronics, Wojciech Szuminski.

The memo confirms their interest in cooperation and use of WB Electronics’ technologies for the UAVs being designed at Antonov State Enterprise for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The base for the realization of the project would be Antonov’s experience in designing and supporting aircraft of various classes and purposes along with high-tech equipment of WB Electronics.

Hvozdev said after the signing of the document that the memo is a benchmark for the new international projects of Antonov enterprise aimed at strengthening the defense of the state.

WB Electronics SA designs UAVs.

Antonov is a leading Ukrainian designer and manufacturer of aircraft. It cooperates with 76 countries.

Antonov State Enterprise has been part of the Ukroboronprom State Concern since April 2015.

KYIV. Sept 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) has once again revised the privatization schedule for 2015 and now plans to sell 25% of shares in power generating companies DTEK Dniproenergo, DTEK Zakhidenergo and Donbasenergo, and 25% of shares in Sumyoblenergo and Odesaoblenergo on the stock exchange in October.

The decision is stipulated in fund resolution No. 1345 of September 14 which was published in the Vidomosti Pryvatyzatsii newspaper.

According to the report, in November 5% of shares in Odesa Port-Side Plant, Sumykhimprom, Odesa and Kherson combined heat and power plants will be sold, along with 5% of shares in Zaporizhiaoblenergo, which has not yet had any of its shares sold, and 25% of shares in DTEK Dniprooblenergo and Kyivenergo, which will be left in state ownership after privatization tenders.

The fund plans to sell 25% of shares in DTEK Donetskoblenergo, 46% of shares in Cherkasyoblenergo, and 16.537% of shares in Zasiadko Mine on the stock exchange in December.

KYIV. Sept 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The Board of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved a project on the provision of debt financing of up to $35 million to Ukrainian agricultural holding Astarta.

IFC Spokesperson Olena Harmash told Interfax-Ukraine that the credit agreement is being prepared for signing.

As reported, the project will help Astarta to ensure financing of its working capital to accumulate soybeans in the harvesting period when farmers have the largest soybean stocks and prices are low as a rule.

Astarta would produce soybean meal, butter and husk, creating products with higher added value. The rest of the soybean purchases will be financed using company funds.

Astarta is a vertically integrated agro-industrial holding comprising five regional divisions in Poltava, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytsky, and Kharkiv regions. It is composed of nine sugar factories, agricultural farms with a land bank of about 245,000 hectares, and dairy farms.

KYIV. Sept 24 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The office of Kharkiv region intended for lobbying social, humanitarian and commercial interests of the region at all levels has been opened in Washington.

U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt said at a briefing in Kyiv on Tuesday that the office was created under the initiative of Kharkiv Regional Administration with support of the U.S. Embassy to Ukraine, the U.S.-Ukraine foundation and NGO GloBee International Agency for Regional Development.

He said that leaders of Kharkiv region today are focusing on the idea of reforms and the building of new democratic institutions. These are critically important conditions for economic growth, and if the course is observed, Kharkiv region would be in the lead of the economic development of independent and integrated Ukraine, he said.

“The U.S. will be a partner in the process,” the diplomat said.

In turn, Head of Kharkiv Regional Administration Ihor Rainin said that today Kharkiv residents selected the European and U.S. way of development.

“I could assure that the office will operate on the permanent basis. We’re considering the U.S. as a partner, the partner, without which it would be difficult to conduct reforms,” he said.

The office with six employees (among whom is Robert A. McConnell, former Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice and former Vice President of CBS Corporation) is located in the center of Washington.