In 2023, Ukraine resumed the construction of vegetable storage facilities, with 15 units built with a total capacity of about 10 thousand tons, Andriy Marushchak, Commercial Director of Van Dyke Techs LLC, told Interfax-Ukraine.
“In the first war year, only one storage facility with a capacity of 1,000 tons was built in Ukraine for storing potatoes in the Kyiv region on the basis of Brovary Potato LLC. In 2023, we can talk about a revival of the market, as 15 storage facilities with a capacity of 10 thousand tons were built. Farmers are far from reaching the pre-war level of investment – in 2021, they built potato storage facilities for 51 thousand tons, and these were mostly large projects with a capacity of 10 thousand tons. Only two market participants invested in projects of 2 thousand tons each,” he said.
According to Marushchak, farmers in Chernihiv, Vinnytsia, Ternopil, Lviv, and Cherkasy regions built small vegetable storage facilities. They are designed mainly for storing onions (85% of the built capacity) and potatoes (15% of the capacity).
It is noteworthy that the farmers used their own funds for the construction, earned from the sale of vegetables at record prices set in the fall and spring of 2022-2023 MY due to the shortage of these products in the country caused by the loss of the main vegetable-growing regions – Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, he explained.
“Farmers will definitely not be able to increase the potential lost by the country on their own. After all, Kakhovka alone had vegetable storage facilities with a capacity of about 150 thousand tons. To restore them, more than UAH 3-4 billion will be needed. In addition, when restoring industrial vegetable production, it is advisable to take into account the “mistakes of the past” and avoid concentrating vegetable storage in one region. Their storage should be dispersed across all regions, each of which should cover its own needs by at least 50%,” the expert added.
Marushchak reminded that the construction of a potato storage facility with a capacity of 1 thousand tons costs a farmer UAH 10 million. A vegetable storage facility with a capacity of 4-5 thousand tons and a potato storage facility with a capacity of 2-3 thousand tons are optimal for storing vegetables. They are equipped with a sorting and packaging line, which, depending on the type and capacity, costs from UAH 4 to 20 million.
“Ukraine will not be able to restore the industry, which primarily meets the needs of the domestic market, without government assistance or regional programs aimed at developing industrial vegetable production,” the expert stated.
He added that targeted regional assistance is needed for farmers in Cherkasy and Dnipropetrovs’k regions who have the ability to provide irrigation necessary for growing vegetables. Given the willingness of farmers to invest in the construction of storage facilities, Vinnytsia region and regions of western Ukraine could also benefit.
Marushchak emphasized that the investments required to build and equip such vegetable storage facilities are quite large and beyond the means of micro and small farmers, and also beyond the means of farmers who grow vegetables on areas of up to 500 hectares.
As reported, according to vegetable sector experts, Ukraine needs 1.4 million tons of potato storage capacity and 300 million tons of vegetables to meet the needs of the domestic market. The optimal storage capacity for carrots should be 80 thousand tons, beets – 20 thousand tons, onions – 120 thousand tons, and cabbage – 80 thousand tons.
Before the war, Ukraine had a total of about 800 thousand tons of storage capacity, of which 600 thousand tons were for potatoes, and 200 thousand tons were for other vegetables.
Initial registrations of used passenger cars imported to Ukraine from abroad in September 2023 did not change compared to August, but increased by 34% compared to September 2022 – to more than 21 thousand units, the Ukravtoprom association reported on its Telegram channel on Monday.
As reported, the August (2023) addition of used cars to the country’s fleet was the largest in the previous 12 months.
According to the association, the largest share in the segment of imported used cars in September, as before, belongs to gasoline cars – 44% (in August – 45%), followed by diesel cars – 31% (32%), electric cars – 16% (15%), cars with LPG – 5% (unchanged) and hybrids – 4% (3%).
Volkswagen Golf remains the leader in registrations (1575 units), and the top five remained unchanged compared to August: Renault Megane (1299 units), Skoda Octavia (923 units), Volkswagen Passat (755 units) and Nissan Leaf (590 units).
The TOP-10 of this market also includes AUDI A4 (414 units), Volkswagen Touran (406 units), Tesla Model 3 (405 units), Volkswagen Tiguan (401 units) and Nissan Qashqai (398 units).
The average age of used cars that switched to Ukrainian license plates in August is almost 10 years.
Overall, in January-September this year, 148 thousand used cars imported from abroad were registered for the first time in Ukraine, which is 3.4 times more than the number of new cars sold in the same period.
As reported, in 2022, Ukrainians registered 388.5 thousand imported used passenger cars, which is almost a quarter less than a year earlier, but more than 10 times more than the market for new passenger cars.
During a phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed the impact of the attack on Israel on the security situation in the region and beyond, and expressed Ukraine’s solidarity with Israel.
“The Prime Minister spoke about the situation in Israel and the actions of the armed forces and law enforcement agencies to repel the attack. We stand in solidarity with Israel, which is suffering from a brazen large-scale attack, and condolences over the numerous victims. Cooperation between the Israeli police and Ukrainian diplomats on the issue of security and protection of Ukrainian citizens in Israel is now important,” Zelensky wrote in a Telegram message on Sunday.
Earlier, Israeli Ambassador to Ukraine Michael Brodsky reported on the phone conversation between Zelensky and Netanyahu.
Oil prices jumped on Monday amid an attack by the radical Palestinian group Hamas on Israel.
The escalating situation in the Middle East poses a risk of a reduction in oil supplies from the region, Market Watch notes.
“Historical analysis shows that oil prices tend to rise steadily in the wake of crises in the Middle East,” said Stephen Innes, managing director of SPI Asset Management.
The cost of December futures for Brent crude oil on the London ICE Futures exchange at 8:15 a.m. on Monday is $87.24 per barrel, which is $2.66 (3.14%) higher than at the close of the previous session. On Friday, the price of these contracts increased by $0.51 (0.6%) to $84.58 per barrel.
Futures for WTI for November in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) have risen by $2.84 (3.43%) to $85.63 per barrel by this time. As a result of the previous trading, the value of these contracts increased by $0.48 (0.6%) to $82.79 per barrel.
On Saturday, rocket attacks were launched from the Gaza Strip on the southern and central regions of Israel. Dozens of Palestinian militants on trucks and paragliders infiltrated Israel from the Gaza Strip.
According to recent reports, the number of people killed in Israel from attacks by fighters of the radical Palestinian group Hamas has exceeded 600, The Times of Israel reported on Sunday. Among the dead are civilians and dozens of police and military personnel. In addition, 2048 people were injured. Israeli authorities believe that Palestinian militants have taken at least a hundred hostages on Israeli territory and taken them to Gaza.
The Israeli Defense Forces announced the launch of Operation Iron Swords in response to large-scale Hamas attacks. The Israeli authorities officially put the country in a state of war.
The Wall Street Journal reported, citing informed sources, that Hamas’s current actions against Israel were planned in advance with the assistance of Iran.
If Iran’s involvement is confirmed, the United States may tighten control over compliance with sanctions on oil exports from the country, Market Watch notes.
Last week, Brent fell by 8.3% and WTI by 8.8%.
On Monday, October 9, light rain is expected at night in the extreme south of Ukraine, moderate rains in Transcarpathia and Prykarpattia during the day (with sleet in the Carpathians); no precipitation in the rest of the country, the Ukrainian Weather Center reports.
Northwest wind, 7-12 m / s, in Ukraine, during the day, except for the western regions, gusts of 15-20 m / s.
The temperature at night will be 1-6° Celsius, on the soil surface (in the Carpathians and in the air) frosts of 0-5°, during the day 6-11° Celsius; in the south at night 3-8° Celsius, during the day 11-16°.
In Kyiv on Monday, no precipitation, northwest wind, 7-12 m / s, gusts of 15-20 m / s.
The temperature will be 4-6° Celsius at night and 8-10° Celsius during the day.
According to the Sreznevsky Central Geophysical Observatory. On October 9, the highest temperature during the day was 29.5° in 1893, and the lowest at night was -2.3° in 1890.
On Tuesday, October 10, Ukraine is mostly without precipitation, with rain and sleet in the Carpathians at night, and light rain in the northeastern regions and Crimea during the day.
Northwest wind with a shift to southwest, 5-10 m/s.
The temperature at night will be 1-6° Celsius, on the soil surface (in the Carpathians and in the air) frosts of 0-5°; during the day 6-11° Celsius.
No precipitation in the capital on October 10. Northwest wind with a shift to southwest, 5-10 m/s. Temperature at night will be 4-6° Celsius; during the day – 8-10°.
Strong earthquakes struck western Afghanistan on October 7, leaving at least 2,060 people dead, the Associated Press reports.
“The death toll from the powerful earthquakes that rocked western Afghanistan has risen to more than 2,000, a Taliban government spokesman said on Sunday. “This is one of the deadliest earthquakes to hit the country in two decades,” the official said in a statement on Sunday.
The powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake was accompanied by strong aftershocks. Approximately six villages were destroyed and hundreds of civilians were buried under the rubble, an Afghan official said.
Initially, several hundred deaths were reported, but now the number has risen to 2,060, according to official figures.
The UN expects the death toll to rise as search and rescue operations continue and there are reports that some people may have been trapped in the rubble.
The earthquake destroyed 465 buildings and damaged another 135.
The epicenter of the earthquake was located about 40 kilometers northwest of the Afghan city of Herat. It was followed by three very strong aftershocks, as well as weaker tremors.
