KYIV. Aug 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The World Bank may allocate $500 million to Ukraine for purchase and pumping gas into underground storage facilities, Ukrainian Energy and Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said at a briefing in Kyiv on Monday.
“Active negotiations are being held with the World Bank, which is talking about $500 million, and IFC, that is ready to talk about $200-250 million to buy gas by a foreign trader,” he said.
Demchyshyn also reminded that there already were some agreements with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, according to which the financial institution might allocate $300 million for the same goals.
KYIV. Aug 11 (Interfax) – Ukraine is expecting a significant rise in the Westinghouse nuclear fuel supply in 2016, Energy and Coal Industry Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.
“Hopefully, we will have five out of 18 supplies from Westinghouse starting from 2016. Currently 12 out of 13 supplies come from Russia,” he said.
Ukraine procured $54.715 million worth of fresh nuclear fuel in January-March 2015.
Only Russian fuel was bought for Ukrainian nuclear power plants in the first quarter of this year, and the delivery was made in March.
In 2014, Ukraine purchased $628.176 million worth of fresh nuclear fuel, including $588.831 million worth from Russia and $39.345 million worth from Sweden.
KYIV. Aug 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – As traditional cooperation with Russia in the space industry is broken, the import substitution of Russian parts in Ukraine’s aerospace co-operation is considered as one of serious long-term tasks, and the plans for its accomplishment should be stipulated in a state-funded program for the development of the domestic defense industry complex until 2020, chief of the Ukrainian State Space Agency Oleh Urusky said.
“The import substitution is a very serious task. Naturally, this is not a matter of one day: I can say that Russia’s imports had fallen a lot in the past year,” he told Interfax-Ukraine, noting that Ukraine was co-operating with Russia only under the international programs of “peaceful space”.
The tasks concerning the industry-related import substitution are being resolved at the state level, Urusky said.
“This work was started in the previous year by Ukroboronprom, when I worked as deputy director for the state-run concern. We continued it at the Ukrainian State Space Agency. It is planned that this issue will be put as a separate section in the state program for the development of the defense and industrial complex until 2020, the development of which, as far as I am concerned, is at the final stage today and will be submitted for consideration to the government soon,” he said.
Meanwhile, Urusky said: “The process of import substitution is two-way: Russia is also following the diversification of the production and the lowering of dependence from our suppliers.”
KYIV. Aug 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine in January-July 2015 reduced gas consumption by 20%, in particular industry by 26%, the population by 20%, heating enterprises by 12%, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry Volodymyr Demchyshyn has stated.
“This is the thesis for those who say the reserves are not sufficient,” he said at a briefing in Kyiv.
Given the fact that consumption in January-July 2014 amounted to 26.022 billion cubic meters, consumption in the first seven months of this year amounted to 20.818 billion cubic meters.
The minister said that at present gas reserves are 13.4 billion cubic meters.
“The question is not in stocks but in gas pumping,” Demchyshyn said, emphasizing that confidence in ensuring gas procurement is high enough.
“Stocks should be increased, but there is no critical level… The situation is clear and balanced,” the minister said.
KYIV. Aug 11 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk has promised to organize an inspection of the work of the current members of the government in September, based on the results of which he will suggest that the parliamentary collation replace ministers who fail to perform their duties.
“In September it will be clear what’s been done and what hasn’t. Based on the results of the assessment of actions of every minister, I will suggest new members of the Cabinet of Ministers and new, efficient structure of the Ukrainian government, as well as regional state administrations to the parliamentary coalition,” Yatseniuk said on the air of “Ten Minutes with Premier” program on Espreso TV on Sunday night.
“[The important thing] has to be not the quantity but the quality, not the imitation but the responsibility,” the PM said.
Yatseniuk noted that he had already “heard out the reports of all ministries.” Tasks have been already given to every minster in the respective area, and in September it will be clear what’s been done, and what hasn’t, he added.
According to Yatseniuk, the only indication of changes in the country “isn’t the process, but the results.”
KYIV. Aug 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Ukraine’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016 according to the optimistic scenario will increase by 2% with inflation (December to December) being 12%, according to the macroeconomic forecast approved by the government of Ukraine.
According to Cabinet resolution No. 558 dated August 5, the macroeconomic forecast includes a pessimistic scenario as well, according to which the decline in GDP in 2016 will amount to 0.3% with inflation being 14.7%.
Under the optimistic scenario, it is assumed that in 2017 economic growth will accelerate to 3.5% while inflation will slow down to 8.1%, and in the next two years will stabilize at 4% with inflation being 5.5-5.2%.
The pessimistic scenario assumes that in 2017 GDP will grow by a mere 1% with inflation being 10.3%, while in 2018-2019 its growth will reach 3% at inflation standing at 7.6-5.8%.
