Raiffeisen Bank Aval, ProCredit Bank and OTP Bank (all based in Kyiv) have signed a credit line agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union (EU) for the total amount of up to EUR 70 million in hryvnia equivalent under the SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) Finance Facility of the EU4Business initiative.
An Interfax-Ukraine correspondent has reported that the signing ceremony took place at the EBRD office on Tuesday.
In particular, Raiffeisen Bank Aval will receive a credit line with the limit of EUR 25 million in hryvnia equivalent, ProCredit Bank – EUR 20 million in hryvnia equivalent, and OTP Bank – EUR 25 million in hryvnia equivalent.
The total limit of the facility is EUR 120 million in hryvnia equivalent.
Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič has said that underground storage filling levels in the European Union (EU) and Ukraine are good.
“A few words on preparations ahead of this winter. I am glad to say that EU underground storage filling levels are very good – currently standing at 96% of full capacity,” Šefčovič said at a press conference in Brussels after the EU-Ukraine-Russia trilateral gas talks.
“Ukraine’s underground storage filling levels are also good – currently at around 19.6 billion cubic meters, almost 4 billion cubic meters above levels in September last year,” he said.
Tough sanctions for violation of the rules of importing cars with foreign registration came into force on August 22, State Fiscal Service of Ukraine said on its website.
“Let us remind that according to new rules a fine in an amount of UAH 85,000 was set if a term of delivery of the vehicles of personal and commercial use delayed by 20-30 days,” the service said.
The rules say that in terms of delay by 30 days, or if the vehicle is damaged or disassembled, the size of the fine will be UAH 170,000 or the car will be subject to confiscation.
The similar fines will be paid under violating of terms of temporarily import of the vehicles: UAH 85,000 fine for failure to meet 20-30 days of deadline, UAH 170,000 or confiscation of the vehicle in case of damage or disassembling of the vehicle.
As reported, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky is going to put to the parliament a bill that postpones fines for three months. During this period, the working group is to draw out a new bill that regulates rules of disassembling of new or already used vehicles, which are in Ukraine or will be imported to Ukraine.
In the Office of the President of Ukraine, Advisor to the Head of State Mykhailo Fedorov had a meeting with the European Union assessment mission with the participation of the European Commission’s DG Connect representatives, the presidential press service has reported.
The purpose of the mission is to assess the readiness of Ukraine’s telecommunications sector to integrate with the EU Digital Single Market (DSM).
“The president’s team clearly understands that further acceleration of economic and social development is possible only in the case of digital transformation. We are willing to fulfill all the conditions quickly to become part of the EU initiative to create a single digital market. These are powerful digital and economic prospects for Ukraine,” Fedorov emphasized.
The DSM strategy is now being successfully implemented in Europe. According to European experts, a single digital market can bring EUR 415 billion annually to a united Europe and create hundreds of thousands of jobs.
The strategy is based on the European values of fair and open competition, open and secure Internet that ensures a free flow of information.
Particular attention was paid to data protection, privacy and cybersecurity issues, including the issue of Internet management.
“The bill ‘On Electronic Communications’ is included in the list of priorities for consideration and approval. The deputies from the future Digital Transformation Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine are already actively working on it,” the Advisor to the President of Ukraine added.
Today, the DSM is regarded as Europe’s main asset aimed at adapting European society and business environment to new conditions of doing business in the international arena. Europeans want to ensure an effective development of different sectors of the economy that use digital technologies to innovate so that they remain competitive globally.
The representatives of the EU mission emphasized the need to ensure the independence and capability of the regulator in the telecommunications sector.
An electronic document generated by the e-archive system of Ukraine in the ASiC format and signed using MobileID based on ECDSA, has been tested for compliance with the EU formats.
“In practice, this means that Ukraine has fully regulatory and technologically implemented the EU requirements for electronic documents,” Ze!Team said on Facebook.
The message says that Ukraine “has become one more step closer to digital Europe.”
“E-government is not only public things, but also complex regulatory and technical work in the back office,” the Ze!Team said.
Alfa Smart Agro has been audited and received an ISCC certificate for the supply of corn and rapeseeds to the EU as raw materials for biofuel, the company has said.
According to a press release, Alfa Smart Agro received the ISCC certificate in a FGP status (first gathering point) and as a trader in rapeseeds and corn.
“Certification for compliance with the ISCC requirements opens up for Alfa Smart Agro the opportunity to supply corn and rapeseeds as raw material for biofuel production to EU countries,” the company noted.
Alfa Smart Agro noted that during the audit, it is not the product itself that is certified, but the process and chain through which it is produced, stored and delivered to the EU markets. Land use is estimated, the amount of greenhouse gas emissions and other indicators are taken into account.
Alfa Smart Agro is a manufacturer of plant protection agents and micronutrients.
