Ukraine on Tuesday received from the Netherlands EUR200 million of credit funds on concessional terms through an IMF-administered account, the Ministry of Finance said.
According to its release, the loan amount bears interest at an annual interest rate equal to the IMF prime rate of interest (IMF basic rate of charge, fixed at 3.641% per annum).
The final repayment of the loan is carried out 10 years from the date of the sample of the loan, taking into account the grace period of 4.5 years from the date of the sample of the loan, the Ministry of Finance said.
The loan funds are designed to finance the cost of the general fund of the state budget, the ministry said.
As reported, in early July this year, the Netherlands announced a decision to allocate another EUR200 million to Ukraine through the IMF account. “The funds will be spent on the current needs of the Ukrainian authorities, such as salaries of civil servants, teachers, medics,” said Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands Lisie Schreinemacher at the International Conference on the Recovery of Ukraine in Lugano, Switzerland.
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih PJSC (AMKR, Dnipropetrovsk oblast) with a $100mn loan to replenish its working capital.
“The loan will be used to finance the company’s working capital needs to ensure business continuity in Ukraine,” the bank said in a statement Thursday.
According to it, the bank’s board of directors approved the project at a meeting on Dec. 14.
The EBRD recalled that it provided financing to AMKR in 2017, developed a comprehensive Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP) and monitored its implementation by PESM, making monitoring visits to the company in recent years.
“Overall, the company was on track for implementation and reported as required. The provision of working capital under the concept of sustainability of Ukraine will allow, among other things, to continue investment plans and implement the existing ESAP, which, in turn, will significantly improve the environment, health and safety at the site,” – pointed out the bank.
The EBRD clarified that a key aspect of the current investment program is the modernization of the sinter plant, and this investment process is ongoing, with work on the sinter lines as well as the air treatment facilities, but some investments planned for 2022-2023 have been postponed due to the ongoing war and the proximity of the front.
“ArcelorMittal Krivoy Rog is the largest producer of rolled steel in Ukraine. It specializes in the production of long products, particularly rebar and wire rod, and is owned by ArcelorMittal.
On November 24 this year, after the blackout caused by Russian missile attacks on the energy infrastructure, AMKR reported about critical limitation of electricity consumption and suspension of most of the production processes. According to the company, the available amount of electricity is not enough to maintain production even at 20% of capacity.
In addition, on the night of December 5, AMKR was hit by a Russian missile strike.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) may lend state-owned Ukreximbank up to EUR50 million to finance private corporate clients and municipalities in Ukraine affected by the war.
“The loan will provide Ukreximbank with much-needed medium-term financing during wartime and will allow the bank to support its private corporate clients and municipalities using its strategic focus, proven experience in corporate lending to critical sectors and strong regional presence,” the bank said in a statement Wednesday.
According to it, the project will be supported by donors: EUR25 million of first-loss risk coverage will be provided by the EBRD’s Special Crisis Response Fund as part of the EBRD’s special Ukraine War Response Package.
Ukreximbank was founded in 1992. The sole owner of the financial institution is the state.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, as of July 1, 2022 Ukreximbank in terms of total assets ranked third (228.608 billion UAH) among 68 operating banks in the country, or about 10% of total assets of the banking system.
The bank has 51 branches across the country and two representative offices in London and New York.
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a $500 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
Taras Melnychuk, representative of the Cabinet in the Verkhovna Rada, said in Telegram on Friday that the relevant decision was made at the government meeting on Friday.
In particular, it was deemed appropriate to attract a loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development as the fourth additional funding for the project “Support for Public Expenditure to Ensure Sustainable Public Administration in Ukraine” in the amount of $500 million.
At a meeting on Friday, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine agreed to increase the amount of a concessional loan to Poland by EUR 60 million under an intergovernmental agreement for the implementation of investment projects.
According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance, the total amount of the soft loan that Poland will provide now amounts to EUR 160 million.
The funds provided will go to Ukravtodor – EUR 94.1 million (development of road infrastructure at the approaches to five border crossing points on the Ukrainian-Polish border), the State Customs Service – EUR 58.9 million (improvement of border crossing points Shehyni, Krakovets, Rava-Ruska, purchase of mobile scanning systems at border crossing points Yahodyn, Shehyni, Krakovets, Rava-Ruska) and the Administration of the State Border Service – EUR 7 million (purchase of unmanned aerial systems and border monitoring equipment).
In addition to increasing the loan amount, the government decree regulates the issue of extending the deadline for concluding contracts by two years – until December 31, 2024, and provides an opportunity to amend contracts concluded in 2017-2018 to increase their value.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the requirement for a minimum of 60% of expenses of Polish origin for the purchase of technical means of customs control will also be cancelled.
The 12th stage of selection of recipients of preferential mortgage loans for internally displaced persons (IDPs) at the expense of a grant from the German lending institution KfW was held at the State Youth Housing Assistance Fund (Gosmolodzhile), the press service of the Ministry of Regional Development reported.
As a result, 500 winners will receive housing loans on favorable terms.
“Thanks to the German government for systematic support at such a difficult time for Ukraine. After all, the housing program is being implemented under an agreement on financial cooperation between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the government of the Federal Republic of Germany. Therefore, another 500 families from internally displaced persons have the opportunity to receive a soft loan to purchase housing “, – Natalya Kozlovskaya, Deputy Minister for the Development of Communities and Territories, is quoted in a press release.
The selection of the winners of the program “Housing for internally displaced persons” was carried out using a random number generator using software (RandomPicker.com service).
Under the terms of the program, loans to IDPs will be provided for up to 20 years at 3% per annum, based on the standard housing area (21 sq. m of total area per person and an additional 10.5 sq. m per family).
As reported, on September 20, the State Youth Ministry held the 11th stage of selection of participants in the “Housing for internally displaced persons” program. 500 winners were selected.
To date, based on the results of the selections, 411 mortgage loans have been issued for a total of UAH 515.6 million.
29,961 applications have been registered in the open register of candidates for obtaining a loan under this program.
The program “Housing for internally displaced persons” is being implemented by the State Youth and the Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories.
The project is funded by a EUR25.5 million grant from the German government provided under an intergovernmental agreement through KfW.
Lending objects can be an apartment in a multi-apartment residential building or a single-apartment residential building, put into operation no more than 50 years ago or reconstructed later – 25 years ago.
You can register for participation in the program through the Diya public services portal or at the regional departments of the State Youth Housing.
At the time of the start of the program, there were about 1.5 million IDPs in Ukraine, of which about 120,000 used the digital certificate of an migrant in the Diya application.
