State-owned Oschadbank has provided a UAH 297 million revolving credit line to Omega LLC, the owner of the Varus supermarket chain, under the state program “Affordable Loans 5-7-9%,” the bank said in a statement on Friday.
“This is the fourth retail chain to receive financing from Oschad in the period from February 2022 to May 2023,” the release said.
According to the release, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the state bank has entered into loan agreements for grocery retail in the corporate business segment for UAH 1.6 billion, thus increasing the volume of financing for this sector by almost 3.5 times.
It is noted that Oschadbank has been cooperating with the VARUS network since 2014. The credit line was opened to replenish working capital for a period of 12 months.
As the state bank recalled, in 2022, Oschad entered into loan agreements with large corporate clients worth almost UAH 14 billion, while the corresponding loan portfolio increased by 24% and amounted to UAH 56.6 billion at the beginning of 2023. It is noted that since the beginning of this year, the volume of loan agreements has reached UAH 14.7 billion.
Omega LLC was established in 2000, the beneficiaries are Valeriy Kiptyk and Ruslan Shostak. The first Varus supermarket was opened in 2003 in Dnipro. According to the website, the chain currently has 103 supermarkets in five regions of Ukraine and the capital, with a retail area of 89.4 thousand square meters. Varus employs seven thousand people.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, as of July 1, 2023, Oschadbank ranked 2nd in terms of assets (UAH 324.74 billion) among 65 banks operating in the country, and first in terms of the number of branches in the country (1183).
On August 24, Ukrposhta, the Ukrainian state postal service enterprise, announced its intention to conclude a contract with Guardian Insurance Company for the provision of compulsory motor third party liability insurance (MTPL).
According to the Prozorro electronic public procurement system, the company’s price offer amounted to UAH 681,743 thousand, with the expected value of the tender at UAH 2.166 million.
The tender was also attended by European Insurance Alliance (UAH 1.003 million) and Krayina (UAH 1.077 million).
Guardian Insurance Company has been operating in the insurance market since 2007.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who arrived in Kyiv, met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“Our Minister Hakan Fidan was received in Kyiv by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on Twitter.
To finalize draft laws No. 9596 and No. 9597 in terms of establishing a zero rate of environmental tax for CO2 emissions from biomass combustion for plants using, including mixed fuel, for the implementation of the European regulatory framework is proposed by the association of cement manufacturers “Ukrcement”.
According to the message on its website, registered in the Parliament on August 9, 2023, draft laws No. 9596 “On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine on the establishment of the rate of zero hryvnia of the environmental tax for carbon dioxide emissions for installations, which carry out such emissions as a result of combustion of biofuels” and No. 9597 “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Alternative Fuels” to create a register of installations using biofuels as a single type of fuel” do not fully take into account the mechanisms enshrined in the European directives.
“Making changes to the legislation today, we already need to be guided by the EU regulatory framework. The main goal there is to reduce CO2 emissions. Not the production of any specific products, but the solution of the global problem,” the report emphasizes.
According to “Ukrcement”, the above bills also do not fully take into account the existing government resolution on monitoring, reporting and verification of greenhouse gas emissions, adopted in 2020 as a prerequisite for the introduction of an emissions trading system.
“Ukraine has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65% of 1990 levels by 2030 through decarbonization and development of alternative energy sources. But the current system of taxation of CO2 emissions in Ukraine does not incentivize the introduction of energy efficiency measures and transition to alternative energy sources. In addition, from October 2023 Ukraine will face another challenge due to the introduction of the European Green Agreement in the EU, which provides for an additional tax for goods from countries with low carbon tax burden – Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM),” the report says.
As noted, without tax exemption for emissions from biomass, regardless of its content, Ukrainian products will become uncompetitive on the European and global markets.
China has increased its imports of semiconductor component manufacturing equipment to a record level ahead of the entry into force of export restrictions by Japan and the Netherlands, the Financial Times reports.
According to the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, the volume of imports of equipment for the production of chips in June and July amounted to about $ 5 billion, which is 70% higher than the figure for the same period last year ($ 2.9 billion).
China purchased the bulk of the equipment from the Netherlands and Japan. These two countries announced in January of this year that they would join the U.S. export restrictions on China’s semiconductor equipment.
In Japan, these restrictions will come into effect on July 23, and in the Netherlands – on September 1. Once they come into effect, buyers of equipment will have to obtain special licenses from the governments of these countries.
As the FT notes, the increased imports of chip-making equipment shows that China wants to avoid any disruption to its plans to expand semiconductor production.
“This is one of China’s responses to export restrictions imposed by the Netherlands and Japan,” notes Lucy Chen, vice president at Taiwanese analyst firm Isaiah Research. – Beijing is stockpiling equipment in advance to negate potential supply chain problems.”
China’s imports of Dutch chip-making equipment doubled in June and July compared with May due to increased shipments by ASML Holding NV, FT industry sources said.
ASML chief executive Peter Wennink said on an investor conference call last month that there was strong demand for equipment designed to produce non-advanced chips from Chinese buyers.
Imports from Japan also rose. In addition, there has been an increase in shipments to China of chip-making equipment from Singapore and Taiwan, the FT notes.
CHINA, IMPORT, PRODUCTION, ЧИП
PJSC Ukrhazvydobuvannya (Kiev) on August 25 announced a tender for compulsory insurance of liability of subjects of transportation of dangerous goods in case of negative consequences during transportation of dangerous goods
As reported in the system of electronic public procurement ProZorro, the expected cost of the purchase of services is UAH 1,601 thousand.
The deadline for submission of documents for these two lots is September 2
