Ukrainian manufacturers of agricultural machinery has said it is necessary to reduce the local contents of domestic complex agricultural machinery set for 2019-2021 that should be observed for receiving a partial compensation for the cost of machinery and equipment.
UkrAgroMash Association of Agricultural Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers addressed to First Deputy Premier of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv with the respective request, the text of which was made available by the National Committee on Industrial Development on Facebook.
“Under present intense competition with the companies from other countries, which can afford cheap loans and enjoy various incentives and financial support of their countries…it becomes more difficult for the Ukrainian producers to uphold their position in the market and increase the local content with having no such kind of support,” reads the report.
The association says current year business realities make it impossible for the manufacturers of the complex self-propelled machinery to gain local contents, which have been set in 2013, for 2019/2020.
Thus, it is proposed to set local contents for self-propelled combine harvesters on the level of 40% in 2019, on the level of 45% in 2020, and on the level of 50% in 2021 (now these indicators are 55% and 60% respectively in 2019 and 2020), to set 45% and 50% contents for tractors for 2019 and 2020 (previously 55% and 60%), and 55% for 2021.
Besides, the manufacturers propose to fix local contents for special-purpose agricultural machines this and next years on the level of 50% and 55% (previously 55% and 60%), and 60% for 2021, local contents for self-propelled spraying machines on the level of 40% and 45% (55% and 60%) and introduce 50% for 2021.
The farm producers also ask to introduce spraying trailer machines into the list setting 45% of local content for 2019, 50% in 2020 and 55% in 2021.
As reported, the program of financial support for agricultural producers (subsidies for the purchase of agricultural machinery, equipment, railway cars) is about UAH 881.8 million. Of these, partial compensation for the cost of agricultural machinery and equipment made in Ukraine is UAH 681.79 million, special vehicles for the transportation of grain, equipment for the production of bioethanol and electricity from biomass, which were purchased from domestic producers – UAH 200 million.
AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY, GOVERNMENT, HARDWARE, LOCAL CONTENT, MANUFACTURERS
CFG/Mriya agricultural holding, which has been operating as a single business since early 2019, in March bought agricultural machinery for the amount of $2.3 million, the press service of the company has reported.
The agricultural holding said that it bought 17 trailing units of agricultural machinery: 12 band spreaders and five cultivators. Deutsche Agrotechnik Ukraine, Rauch Landmaschinenfabrik GmbH and UAPC LLC supplied the machinery.
“This is the first of the planned deliveries of equipment for the CFG/Mriya joint agricultural holding this year. The general investor, Salic UK Ltd, intends to send several dozens of millions of dollars to update the CFG/Mriya fleet in 2019 to ensure further effective activity of the merged company,” the company said in a press release.
Mriya Agro Holding is a vertically integrated agribusiness, which was founded by Ivan Huta in 1992. The holding’s land bank is 165,000 hectares. Its grain elevators are able to store 380,000 tonnes.
In August 2014, Mriya reported an overdue payment of about $9 million in interest income and about $120 million in repayment of debt on its obligations. The total debt to all financial creditors, taking into account the guarantees provided to the companies related to the Huta family, was about $1.3 billion at the time of the holding’s default.
In early February 2015, the operating control of the holding was transferred to creditors who elected the new management, and in September 2016 the committees of creditors and bondholders of the holding agreed on the conditions for the restructuring of the company’s debt, which was estimated at $1.1 billion. The debt restructuring ended in August 2018. Mriya’s total debt burden decreased from $1.1 billion to $309.5 million, which included $49.3 million in restructured secured debt, $208.1 million in restructured unsecured debt (eurobonds), $46 million in working capital, and $6.1 million in assets under a new leasing program for the purchase of equipment.
In September 2018, SALIC UK Limited announced the acquisition of the holding. The deal was completed in November 2018.
Mriya will continue operations in Ukraine together with SALIC UK’s subsidiary, CFG.
The Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) was founded in 2012. Its sole shareholder is the Sovereign Fund of Saudi Arabia. The company invests in the production of agricultural and livestock products.
CFG has been operating in Ukraine since 2006. It processes 45,000 hectares in Lviv and Ternopil regions.
