The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is about to invest from $2 million to $4 million in the development of infrastructure of auctions stimulating renewable energy, EBRD Deputy Director in Ukraine Marina Petrov said during her interview to the Reform.Energy website. “This is the money that we are already asking for now from the donors in order to launch a high-quality auction,” she said. She explained that market players might not be able to perceive poorly organized auctions. “This is very important to keep up the balance of interests in order to receive the most outstanding result,” Petrov said. The auctions will have to be transparent, understandable and in line with legislation.
According to her, the EBRD during Ukraine’s transition to the auctions stimulating renewable energy is ready to share its experience from similar auctions in those countries which were the first ones to introduce such tools. Such or similar auctions are held in Turkey, Poland, Bulgaria, Jordan, Egypt, and Armenia, she said.
The amount is to be allocated within the EBRD’s USELF-III lending facility approved in July this year in the amount of EUR 250 million to support private renewable energy projects in Ukraine, she said.
Speaking at the Ukrainian Financial Forum organized by the ICU Invest Group in Odesa, the EBRD representative said that market operators had questions as for who would be a balancing player on this market. She said that the EBRD was working jointly with the U.S. Agency for International Development to create the market of balancing facilities and invest the funds in more mobile parts of the system, e.g. batteries, gas turbines. “This is next year’s agenda,” Petrov said.
In general, she described the situation on the renewables market as a “quick sprint” – the investment is to be made while the current feed-in tariffs are in effect.
“We’ve got many investors who are mulling over investment this and next year. We have fewer investors who are preparing projects for 2020-2021. We see there will be a steep decline,” she said.
In this connection, she called on the adoption of a law on renewable energy auctions by the end of the current year.
Ukraine has great potential for the development of other sectors of renewable energy, mainly biofuel and small hydro facilities, she said.
DEVELOPMENT, EUROPEAN BANK, INVEST, RECONSTRUCTION, RENEWABLE ENERGY
The Dobrobut medical network plans by 2020 to open a new medical building, investment in which would be around $20 million, Dobrobut Director General Oleh Kalashnikov said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine. “We are working on a new large building. Together with Philips, we have already developed a large conceptual project and approved a medical task for it,” he said.
Currently, a complete reconstruction of the building with an area of 9,600 square meters, located in Sevastopolska Square in Kyiv, is being held, repair works are under way.
According to the director general of Dobrobut, the medical service will be represented in three segments. “First of all, there will be a Center for Cardiovascular Diseases. We also plan to develop oncology and neurology in the building,” he said, adding that the new building will have five angiographic operating rooms.
At the same time, he said that the network intends to invest in angiography in the near future, which will allow Dobrobut to provide a full range of cardiosurgical services of all kinds, including endovascular ones.
“Regarding angiography and endovascular operations, I think that we will be able to do them in November and, accordingly, to cover the whole range of services,” he said, adding that the tender for the purchase of an angiograph is currently at the final stage.
Kalashnikov also said that since the opening of the Center for Cardiac Surgery early 2017, it has carried out a little more than 450 surgeries, 263 of which have been performed using a minimally invasive method.
In turn, Head of the center Oleksandr Babliak said that the center is the first among cardiosurgical clinics in the world, which began to implement multi-vessel coronary bypass surgeries using a minimally invasive method.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF), a sovereign wealth fund owned by Saudi Arabia and a global leader in the volume of investment in agriculture, with the acquisition of the Mriya farming company has made the largest investment in the Ukrainian agricultural sector over the entire period of Ukraine’s independence and plans to additionally invest large funds in the company, Head of Office of the National Investment Council of Ukraine Yulia Kovaliv has said.
“With acquiring Mriya’s assets, the PIF plans additional investments in the technology park and assets of the holding over the next two years in the amount of up to $150 million,” she told Interfax-Ukraine.
“We assume that the next step will be investment in transport and port infrastructure,” Kovaliv said.
In this regard, she pointed out the importance of adopting a new concession law, which is waiting for second reading in parliament. It can become a tool to attract this and other strategic investors to the transport sector.
“Potentially, the PIF is ready to consider projects in the energy and real estate sectors,” the head of Office of the National Investment Council also said.
As reported, Mriya Farming Plc (the U.K.) and SALIC UK Ltd. (Saudi Agricultural & Livestock Investment Company, the U.K.) entered into a share purchase agreement for the sale to SALIC of the Mriya group’s Ukrainian farming assets, including infrastructure facilities, machinery, and companies owning land lease agreements.
PJSC Farmak (Kyiv), among top three leaders of the pharmaceutical sector of Ukraine, plans to invest $10 million in construction of a pharmaceutical plant in Uzbekistan, the company’s press service has reported. “With a view to the export development, Farmak is considering an investment project with investment of $10 million to localize production in the Republic of Uzbekistan with the launch of production in bulk and a gradual transition to full-cycle production, with the development of technologically more complex products, in particular, radiopaque and biotechnological products,” the press service of the company said, citing Chairperson of the supervisory board Filia Zhebrovska.
At present, Farmak is fourth in sales in the pharmaceutical market of Uzbekistan, the portfolio of products sold in this country totals 120 items.
The company said that the head of the Farmak’s supervisory board and Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Ukraine Alisher Abdualiyev have already agreed on the construction of the plant.
“The new production facility of Farmak will expand the range of medicines that are produced in Uzbekistan, reduce dependence on imported production and create a basis for further expansion of the pharmaceutical cluster,” Abdualiyev said.
Farmak is a member of the Association Manufacturers of Medications of Ukraine (AMMU).
European B2B accelerator Startup Wise Guys plans to invest up to EUR 2 million in Ukraine startups at an early stage in the coming two years. Startup Wise Guys CEO Cristobal Alonso told Interfax-Ukraine that of the 100 startups, in which the accelerator has invested for seven years in the European market, 15 companies are from Ukraine. In total, these Ukrainian startups received support from Startup Wise Guys in the amount of about EUR 600,000.
“By 2020, we plan to make investments in 100 more startups, of which, with the current trend, 15-20% will be allocated to Ukrainian companies. We are planning to increase the total investment, respectively to EUR 50,000. Of this amount, EUR 30,000 will be cash, and EUR 20,000 is investments in the growth program. We would be able to pre-invest another EUR 50,000 in the half of the companies which the accelerator invested in, and in the event of particularly successful startups [Startup Wise Guys will invest] another EUR 100,000 more,” Alonso said.
According to him, earlier investments were up to EUR 40,000, including EUR 20,000 of financial assistance and EUR 20,000 in the development program.
During the acceleration program Ukraine Startup Hunt in Kyiv, a total 48 applications were submitted from Ukrainian startups, of which 20 were allowed to take part in the first qualifying round, and 10 entered the second round. As a result, Startup Wise Guys selected four startups to participate in the final round, which will be held in September this year. The startups-winners will receive up to EUR 30,000 of the seed money, a wide network of contacts, promotion and recommendations for expanding to all European countries.
Of the four winners, three teams were selected in the B2B SaaS and one in the Fintech segment.
Among the winners are Zirity (web and mobile AR application for real-time eyeglasses fitting), StudyDive (the online platform for selection of short-term and long-term educational programs (courses, trainings, seminars), NUWORK (HR tool for recruiting personnel for HoReCa) and Geologic Group (a geolocation solution to improve the security of providing banking services).
Public joint-stock company Ukrzaliznytsia has announced that China Eximbank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China are ready to invest in the development of Ukrainian railway infrastructure, increase of its quality and the speed, according to a posting on the website of Ukrzaliznytsia after the discussion of issues of developing high-speed railway traffic and the upgrade of Ukrzaliznytsia’s rolling stock jointly with representatives of Chinese banks and railway companies in Kyiv. Ukrzaliznytsia reported that representatives of Chinese railway companies expressed their desire to find a successful economic model for promoting high-speed traffic in Ukraine.
“China’s Eximbank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China will be willing to invest in the development of Ukraine’s railway infrastructure, improving the quality of its use and speed,” Ukrzaliznytsia said. Welcoming colleagues from China, acting Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov said that their readiness for dialogue testifies to the seriousness of their intentions.
“The construction of a high-speed railway line was discussed at the level of the ministry, and today we see the construction of this line as a national project. I see a great potential in it, but Ukrzaliznytsia’s own funds are not sufficient for its implementation,” Kravtsov said.
He said that Kovel, Lviv and Mukachevo are promising points for connecting them with European narrow gauge track, and this is a realistic project for Ukrzaliznytsia in the coming years. Kravtsov also invited Chinese companies to participate in the tender for the electrification of the Dolynska-Mykolaiv-Kolosivka line.
The meeting was attended by representatives of Chinese companies: China Road And Bridge Corporation, China Railway Construction Corporation International Limited, China Railway Siyuan Survey and Design Group, China Railway Engineering Co., Ltd., China Railway International Group and China Railway Limited Group.
