Economic results of KSG Agro holding for 2021 were confirmed by international audit company Crowe which is one of the top 10 world audit networks, the holding press-release said on Monday.
According to the report, the agrarian group has significant biological assets through its agricultural operations, which reached $39.4 million at the end of 2021, and net income from biological transformation for that year was $7.3 million.
“The pre-war year was one of the best in the history of our holding company, as witnessed by international auditors. Thanks to the successful choice of technology and weather conditions, our crop yields were the highest in the last 10 years, and in the pig segment we had a good update of the herd with Canadian Genesus genetics and achieved high dynamics of piglet litter,” – quotes the head of the holding Sergei Kasyanov.
KSG Agro noted that Polish investors are very closely monitoring the state and development of the Ukrainian companies which are listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. They understand that Ukraine will win the war with Russia, and therefore they pay attention to the professional evaluation of the financial and production situation of Ukrainian assets by international auditing companies, said the holding
KSG Agro reminded that according to the results of 2021, KSG Agro S.A. (Luxemburg) increased gross income by 44% compared to 2020 – from $21.3 million to $30.7 million, EBITDA by 2 times – from $6.02 million to $12.27 million, its operating profit increased by 2.5 times – from $4.3 million to $10.7 million. The profit of KSG Agro S.A. (Luxemburg), which includes all the group companies, was $20.2 million before taxes.
The vertically integrated holding KSG Agro is engaged in pig breeding as well as the production, storage, processing and sale of grain and oilseeds. Its land bank is about 21,000 hectares.
According to the agricultural holding, it is one of the top five pork producers in Ukraine.
KSG Agro in the first half of 2022 increased normalized profit by 43% compared with January-June 2021 – to $1.21 million, while its revenue decreased by 12%, to $6.02 million, and EBITDA by 17%, to $2.22 million.
Ferrexpo Poltava Mining (FPM) and Ferrexpo Yeristovo Mining (FYM), which are the Ferrexpo Group’s subsidiaries, in January 2022, successfully passed a social responsibility audit as per the SMETA methodology, which was carried out by the Intertek international company.
The audit explored the extent of the employees’ social protection and ran across production subdivisions, support services and Administration. Collective and individual interviews were also held at all levels of key and support personnel and contractor workforce.
The approaches of the Companies’ management to the social security of their employees, free transportation to the workplace, high-quality medical care at the company-owned Medical Unit, health and life insurance were positively noted.
The social audit outcomes will be posted on the Sedex platform official website.
Inna Us, Head of Projects and Programmes – Lead Auditor on Social Responsibility and Management Systems of Intertek Ukraine:
“According to the audit data, it has been found that these companies are in compliance with the requirements of the conventions of the International Labor Organization and the SMETA program. The employer provides the conditions for safe work, working hours meet the requirements of Ukrainian Law and industry standards, there is no discrimination and the company is guided by the regulations that fully protect the employees’ rights.”
Yaroslavna Blonska, Head of Sales Europe – External Relations Officer Ferrexpo:
“For the first time, we passed the social responsibility audit using the SMETA methodology and received a high rating from the international company Intertek. The positive opinion of the auditors testifies not only to the high quality of production, but also to the worthy level of social responsibility of our companies. The results of the analysis once again confirmed that Ferrexpo has created the required conditions for safe operation, implements high technologies to reduce the adverse impact of its activities on the environment and is a reliable business partner both in Ukraine and in international markets.”
Audit reference:
Sedex Members EThical Audit is an audit that assesses a company’s compliance with established requirements in four main areas: occupational health and safety, environment, working conditions, and supplier’s goodwill.
The outcomes of the SMETA social responsibility audit are recognized in more than 160 countries of the world and are a weighty and undeniable argument in confirming the company’s compliance with the moral standards of its external and internal business processes.
Company reference:
Ferrexpo is a Swiss headquartered iron ore company with assets in Ukraine and a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange in the FTSE 250 index (ticker FXPO). The Group produces high grade iron ore pellets, which are a premium product for the global steel industry and enable reduced carbon emissions and increased productivity for steelmakers when the Group’s iron ore pellets are converted into steel, compared to more commonly traded forms of iron ore. Ferrexpo’s operations have been supplying the global steel industry for over 40 years and in 2021 the Group produced 11.2 million tonnes of iron ore pellets, placing Ferrexpo as the world’s 3 rd largest exporter of pellets to the global steel industry with a market share of approximately 9%. The Group has a global customer base comprising of premium steel mills around the world, which includes steel mills in Austria, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Vietnam and America. For further information, please visit www.ferrexpo.com
Intertek reference:
Intertek is an industry leader with over 43,800 employees from 1,000 offices in over 100 countries. The company helps local and global businesses meet the quality, health, environment, safety and social responsibility standards of virtually every market worldwide. More information can be found at www.intertek.com.
JSC Market Operator has received a positive conclusion from the independent auditor Baker Tilly on the organization of work in the day-ahead market (DAM) and the intraday market (IDM) in 2020.
“Based on the procedures we performed and the evidence obtained, nothing attracted our attention to force us to believe that the Market Operator did not adhere in all material aspects to the requirements of the DAM and IDM Rules during the period from January 1 to December 31, 2020,” the auditors said in the conclusion dated December 30, 2021, published on the Market Operator website on Friday.
The subject of the audit was, in particular, the submission of bids for the sale and purchase of electricity by the DAM and IDM participants, the correctness of the determination of the trading results and related charges, the assessment of the implementation of the DAM and IDM rules by the Market Operator software.
The company said that the Market Operator for the second year in a row has received a positive conclusion from independent auditors.
The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food will perform a coordinating function in the anti-corruption audit of the State Land Cadastre, and the obtained data on land fraud will be transferred to law enforcement agencies, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Roman Leshchenko told Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday.
According to him, relevant agreements have already been signed on conducting an independent anti-corruption audit with the involvement of international organizations, which will include data from the Ukrainian side and independent expertise. This information will be published on the open data portal, and information about land scammers will be provided for consideration by law enforcement agencies and the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC).
“The relevant data will be formed for all land scammers and a collegial decision of the National Security and Defense Council will be made in accordance with the current legislation,” the minister said.
Leshchenko said that the tracking of all schemes for the consolidation of assets and their beneficiaries will not end quickly, since all processes will be worked out systematically, without the use of selective measures. As an example, the minister cited a “network” formed on the basis of powers of attorney signed by 5,000 citizens, who authorized one person to execute registration and transfer of land plots.
“We are talking about land plots with the legal title of private farms, consolidated on the balance sheet of legal entities, including those with the beneficiaries, close to one or another vertical of power over the past 30 years of our statehood,” Leshchenko said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has announced an investigation into the lawfulness of privatization of strategic enterprises and subsoil deposits in the country by individuals.
“Those, who believed that a controlling stake in strategic defense enterprises, in particular Motor Sich, may end up with not the state, but in private hands, and land and subsoil deposits that belong to the people of Ukraine may also be seized, should also receive a fair and legitimate reaction from Ukraine. How did this happen? Again it is a rhetorical question. But the answers will be found by law enforcement agencies, together with the State Service of Geology and Mineral Resources,” Zelensky said in a video message posted on his Facebook page on Friday evening.
“Citizens should know: how and on what conditions a number of people in Ukraine received certain resources. Those who did it legally have nothing to fear. And to establish this, a most detailed audit will be carried out, the results of which will be presented to society. I am sure that these answers should not be rhetorical, but concrete, exhaustive and well-reasoned – both for citizens and for possible future court cases,” the head of the Ukrainian state said.
The Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine has initiated an unscheduled internal audit of the state enterprise Ukrliktravy, the ministry reported on its website on Monday, October 26.
“On the basis of an official investigation, information about the unsatisfactory financial and economic condition of the enterprise, as well as in connection with the improper performance of his official duties, head of the state enterprise Ukrliktravy Andriy Vlasenko was dismissed,” the report says.
The total tax debt of the enterprise exceeds UAH 12 million, all accounts are blocked, the ministry added.
“As of October 26, 2020, the company has not submitted reports to the tax authorities for VAT and single social security tax,” the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture said.
The state enterprise did not submit financial plans for 2020 and 2021, which is a gross violation. In addition, there is no reporting for the second quarter and the first half of this year, the ministry said.
“Also, during the inspections, it was revealed that the company is not actually located at the legal address. There is no staff (there is no legal, financial, personnel and other services). Along with this, there is the urgent problem of harvesting maize and soybeans, which due to weather conditions remain unharvest and carrying out a complex of autumn field work,” the ministry added.
