KYIV. Nov 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Germany would provide a loan of up to EUR 32.5 million to Ukraine for the period of up to 30 years and the grace period of 10 years under the second phase of the project on increase of energy efficiency in power transmission (modernization of transformer substations) by the end of this year, the Economic Development and Trade Ministry of Ukraine reported on Tuesday.
“The project is intended to increase quality of power supply thanks to restoration of transformer substations and strengthening power lines,” the ministry said.
The ministry said that the agreements were reached during a visit of a ministry’s delegation to Berlin on November 3 and November 4 and negotiations with representatives of Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, KfW Bankengruppe and GIZ.
The total volume of the financial assistance from Germany to be provided by the end of 2016 would be EUR 72 million, the head of the Ukrainian delegation and Deputy Economic Development and Trade Minister Maksym Nefyodov said.
Some EUR 16 million is provided for developing democracy, civil society, public administration, regional development and decentralization, EUR 36 million for energy efficiency and EUR 20 million to build and reconstruct houses for internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Along with this loan, up to EUR 24.5 of financial assistance million would be provided as grants for support of the implementation of projects aimed at strengthening Ukrainian local self-government, construction and reconstruction of houses for IDPs, and the rest of the funds is technical assistance for decentralization, public administration reforms and local energy efficiency projects.
The ministry said that since 2002, Germany has provided EUR 500 million of assistance to Ukraine.
KYIV. Nov 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The German government intends to provide EUR 20 million to finance projects to build and reconstruct houses of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in 2017.
The press service of the Ministry for the Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine, the ministry is responsible for distribution of the funds.
The money will be provided in the form of grants to support construction and reconstruction projects.
The total sum agreed on by the governments of the two countries as part of technical and financial cooperation is EUR 72 million.
KYIV. Nov 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Public joint-stock company Ukrgazvydobuvannia seeks to invest $3 billion to purchase and modernize drilling rigs by 2020, as well as to attract external contractors to carry out the works at the company’s fields, Ukrgazvydobuvannia Head Oleh Prokhorenko has said.
“We assess drilling at $3 billion by 2020. This includes modernization of equipment and works,” he said at the 14th Fuel & Energy Complex of Ukraine: the Present and the Future international forum in Kyiv.
Prokhorenko said that the program includes acquisition of 30 new drilling rigs (by 2020), modernization of 32 existing rigs (in 2016-20180 and drilling of around 660 new wells (71 wells in 2016), 88 wells in 2017, 131 wells in 2018, 166 wells in 2019 and 201 wells in 2020). The company intends to attract 15 rigs of international contractors in 2017.
“The task is to expand our fleet and the fleet of contractors. We will try to have 114 rigs in operation by 2020 and increase the speed of commercial drilling,” he said, adding Ukrgazvydobuvannia now drills 297 meters per rig a month, while the figure of external contractors is around 900 meters per rig a month.
Prokhorenko believes that $3 billion of investment into the expansion of drilling in 2016-2020 is not a sky-high figure. He took $54 billion Ukraine sent to import Russian gas in 2009-2013 as an example.
He also said that investment of $500 million in outsourcing would help to drill 90 wells by 15 rigs and get an additional 3.3 billion of cubic meters of natural gas a year. This is a good figure for saving compared to purchases of imported gas.
He said that the company would conduct 3D seismic works on 17 fields with gross area of 1,500 square meters in coming years.
KYIV. Nov 9 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko have discussed stepping up trade, economic and investment cooperation, participation in the privatization process and resumption of air travel during an official visit of Poroshenko to Ljubljana.
“The Ukrainian president noted the interest of Ukraine in enhancing trade-economic and investment cooperation with Slovenia. The parties noted that the DCFTA between Ukraine and the EU opened new opportunities for that,” the press service of the head of state reported.
Poroshenko invited Slovenian companies to join privatization in Ukraine.
The parties agreed to promptly complete procedures necessary for the restoration of direct air connection between the countries.
Poroshenko expressed gratitude to the Slovenian government for the provision of TV and radio broadcasting equipment and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine due to the aggression of Russia in Donbas.
“The parties agreed to implement projects on demining and protection of civilians in Donbas within the International Trust Fund to enhance human security. For this end, the intergovernmental agreement in the sphere of mine action will be concluded,” the press service said.
The prime minister of Slovenia expressed full support for the provision of the visa-free regime for Ukrainians by the EU. He praised the progress of Ukraine in the implementation of reforms in the economy.
BAKU. Nov 8 (Interfax) – The prime ministers of the GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova) Organization for Democracy and Economic Development are due to discuss transport corridors and a free trade zone, GUAM Secretary General Altai Efendiyev told Interfax.
“Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has initiated a meeting of GUAM prime ministers in Kyiv to focus on the implementation of a transport corridor and the completion of procedures, which will start up a free trade zone between our states,” Efendiyev said.
A business forum will be held on the sidelines of the prime ministers’ meeting, he said.
“The Kazakh head of government has also been invited to the meeting of the prime ministers, which means this meeting will be held in the GUAM+ format. We think this is necessary because the logical continuation of this route will make sense,” Efendiyev said.
Ukrainian commodities should reach consumers in the East, while cargo traffic from the East, including Central Asia, should reach European markets, he said.
“We are actually setting the task to reanimate transport corridors through a major project incorporating the interests of practically all countries, including China and European nations. If we manage to make this project attractive and competitive through joint efforts, it can become a foundation of stable and safe economic cooperation in the highly unstable and unpredictable region,” the GUAM secretary general said.
The project is highly important for the Visegrad Group and the Baltic countries, he said. “The Baltic Council has shown interest in the possibility to connect the Baltic, Black and Caspian Seas. This idea has been discussed for a long time and it is very close to coming true,” Efendiyev said.
In his words, GUAM has been closely interacting with Washington and Tokyo in the GUAM+ U.S. and GUAM+ Japan formats.
“We are eyeing Poland and the Czech Republic as partners in particular projects, and we are also interested in cooperation with the Visegrad Group,” the GUAM secretary general said.
Back on January 15, 2016, the Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry jointly with Ukrzaliznytsia organized the demonstration trip of a container train along the new Silk Road, from Ukraine to China through Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan (via the Caspian and Black Seas). It took the train 16 days to reach China early in the morning of January 31.
