State-owned Oschadbank (Kyiv) and one of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, JV Nibulon LLC, have agreed on a series of new loan agreements to replenish working capital, which refinance the company’s investments totaling $20.3 million, the first part of this loan program for $13 million has already been signed, the bank’s press service reports.
According to the report, Nibulon will use the funds to restore working capital after investing in the construction of a new transshipment terminal on the Danube. The Bessarabian branch began operations in 2022 and became the main route for exporting agricultural products, which was crucial in the context of the aggressor’s blockade of Ukrainian seaports in previous periods.
“The replenishment of working capital guarantees Nibulon’s ability to fully support the procurement campaign for the 2024/25 season and support the Ukrainian farmer in times of war,” the bank said, adding that after heavy losses and a difficult return to stability, the company was able to gain momentum and develop an ecosystem that will ensure sustainable food security.
“Nibulon has been a long-standing and reliable partner for us for over 6 years. It is one of the pillars of the country’s food potential, including exports. To date, the company’s total loan portfolio in Oschad is already almost UAH 2 billion. Given that Oschadbank has a high level of liquidity, we are ready to continue financial support for Nibulon in all its initiatives to restore its leadership positions in global markets lost due to the full-scale war,” said Yuriy Katsiyon, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Oschadbank in charge of corporate business, during the signing of the agreement.
The agroholding noted that the support of the real economy by state-owned banks is evidence of the government’s consistent adaptation of its policy to the conditions of a full-scale war and its real focus on helping businesses.
“We see changes. We see a targeted state policy of supporting domestic business in action. This is a direct recognition of the critical role of strategic enterprises for the further development of Ukraine and a guarantee of our successful future,” said Andriy Vadatursky, CEO of Nibulon. Andriy Vadatursky, CEO of Nibulon.
“We are grateful to Oschadbank for its systematic and consistent support of us, representatives of companies in the sector that ensures the country’s food security. At the very beginning of the full-scale war, Oschadbank provided Nibulon with additional funding for the 2022/2023 sowing campaign to prevent a food crisis that the aggressor was trying to create. In 2023, Oschadbank was one of the first to restructure Nibulon’s pre-war loan to support the company, which suffered losses due to the destruction of infrastructure during the hostilities, the blocking of sea routes from the port of Mykolaiv, and the forced reorientation to other logistics routes. And now we have new funding that we will use for the procurement campaign to support small and medium-sized agricultural producers,” said Vitalina Marchenko, Head of Nibulon’s Banking Department.
As reported earlier, Nibulon Group has more than 25 Ukrainian and foreign creditors, with the vast majority of whom have already signed restructuring agreements.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, capacity to store 2.25 million tons of agricultural products at a time, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and has been forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), as of July 1, 2024, Oschadbank ranked 2nd (UAH 435.06 billion) in terms of total assets among 62 banks in the country. Last year, the financial institution’s net profit amounted to UAH 5.98 billion.
One of the largest operators of the Ukrainian grain market, JV Nibulon LLC, shipped the second batch of 63 thsd tonnes of wheat to Egypt under the tender of the General Authority for Supply of Goods of the Egyptian government GASC via the Danube Grain Corridor, the grain trader’s press service reported on its Facebook page.
According to the report, the grain was loaded on the EDFU vessel, owned by the Egyptian state-owned company National Navigation Company (NNC), at the anchorage PGM-2 of TTS Operator SRL (Constanza).
“Thanks to the well-coordinated and professional work of the Nibulon fleet team and our strategic partners, TTS (Transport Trade Services), the daily grain loading rate reached a record 18.2 thousand tons. This high productivity is very important, because along with a stable cargo flow, it allows us to reduce delivery costs,” said Nibulon’s Chief Logistics Officer Sergey Kalkutin, Director of Logistics at Nibulon.
He emphasized that such voyages allow the Danube Grain Corridor to compete with the ports of Greater Odesa.
In times of war and permanent danger, having a full-fledged alternative logistics channel for grain exports is not an additional option, but a vital necessity on which the world’s food security depends, Nibulon believes.
As reported, in August, Nibulon delivered the first shipment of Ukrainian grain to Egypt under the GASC.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a one-time storage capacity of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever volume of 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, Nibulon JV LLC, exported 100 thousand tons of grain to 25 countries using grain carriers and trucks provided by the USAID Ukraine project, the grain trader’s press service reported on its Facebook page.
The agricultural holding recalled that in 2023, Nibulon was forced to switch from water transportation of grain to transportation by road and rail. This alternative solution was helped by the USAID Ukraine economic support project. The Nibulona Project purchased 50 Modern Hope trucks with the capacity to transport 70 tons of grain each. Thanks to this support, Nibulona delivered and exported the first 100 thousand tons of grain to 25 countries.
“We are grateful to our international partners who lend a friendly hand in a difficult time for the company by providing the necessary railcars. This allowed us to continue working, resuming purchases of agricultural products at the blocked river terminals and thus supporting our agricultural partners. The combination of road and rail transport has allowed us to optimize logistics costs and offer purchase prices to farmers that ensure the profitability of their production,” said Nibulon Logistics Director Serhiy Kalkutin and congratulated his colleagues from Danube Transportation.
As reported, in 2023, USAID provided Nibulon with 50 hopper cars built at Karpaty DMZ for grain transportation. In 2024, USAID’s Economic Support for Ukraine provided the grain trader with 13 grain carriers with trailers. “Nibulon also asked the donor organization for assistance in obtaining 250 grain carriers.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a one-time storage capacity of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever volume of 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, JV Nibulon LLC, and Pravex Bank, part of the Intesa Sanpaolo group, have entered into a bilateral agreement to extend the restructuring of a $5.5 million loan for six years with preferential interest rates and a grace period for debt repayment, the grain trader’s press service reported on its Facebook page.
“PRAVEX Bank approaches each case of debt restructuring individually, taking into account the specifics of the business and the needs of its clients. This approach allows us to provide the most effective financial solutions and maintain stable partnerships,” commented Yuriy Lytvynenko, Director of the bank’s Loan Management Department.
Nibulon noted that the loan restructuring will help it optimize its financial flows and focus on implementing strategic projects aimed at strengthening and developing the agricultural sector of Ukraine.
“We are confident that this step will be an important incentive for the company’s further growth and prosperity, strengthening our market position and contributing to the country’s economic development,” said Nibulon’s CFO Irina Levkovskaya.
As reported earlier, Nibulon Group has more than 25 Ukrainian and foreign creditors, with the vast majority of whom have already signed restructuring agreements.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, capacity to store 2.25 million tons of agricultural products at a time, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever volume of 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, Nibulon JV LLC (Mykolaiv), is launching a large-scale modernization of its elevator business, which will include automation, unification of services and mechanisms to ensure quality standards, the grain trader’s press service reported on Facebook.
“Additionally, the capacities of Khmilnyk, Vradiyevsky, Kolosivsky elevator and Transshipment Terminal branches will be significantly expanded,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.
According to the grain trader, the second stage of the elevator will be built at the Khmilnyk branch (Vinnytsia region), where the total investment will amount to $3.9 million, and will be equipped with four new tanks and transportation equipment. In addition, two STRAHL grain dryers will be installed to increase the drying capacity to 2200 tons per day (from scratch) to attract agricultural producers to cooperate. Previously, this branch served the needs of Nibulon’s own agricultural production exclusively.
Investments in the modernization of Vradiyivskyi (Mykolaiv region) will amount to $800,000. The company will double its capacity and change the scheme of acceptance and shipment, which will allow it to work with several crops at the same time and reduce waiting time for the grain trader’s partners.
“Kolosivskyi elevator (Mykolaiv region) will also get a second wind, with the company allocating $265 thousand for the reconstruction of the first stage. The focus is to double the productivity of grain receiving and shipping,” the agricultural holding said.
In addition, the transshipment terminal in Mykolaiv will receive $720 thousand in investments to build a new gallery that will allow it to receive cargo from water transport and transfer it to rail transport and then to the Bessarabian branch. With Mykolaiv port hub blocked, this will help reduce logistics costs on the way to Izmail ports.
“We are planning to automate all elevators and equip them with sensors that will record the service life of the equipment and automatically transfer this data to a single control center. As a result, we expect to increase the efficiency of the elevator business through optimization and automation, reduce the cost of services through the rational use of resources and increase salaries for the branch teams,” Nibulon summarized.
Nibulon JV LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, a one-time storage capacity of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
One of the largest grain market operators in Ukraine, Nibulon JV LLC (Mykolaiv), transshipped 434 thousand tons of corn and wheat in April and returned to pre-war levels, the grain trader’s press service reported on Facebook.
“Despite the devastating damage and blockade of the Mykolaiv port, Nibulon demonstrates a recovery in exports in 2022-2024 and regains market share. This becomes possible due to the development of alternative channels through the Danube port and the effective use of the capabilities of the Black Sea ports,” the agricultural holding said.
According to the report, Nibulon exported 2.4 million tons of agricultural products in the first nine months of the 2023-2024 marketing year (MY), despite the blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports. Its current share through the Danube ports in the first quarter of 2024 was in the range of 20-30%. The agricultural holding forecasts annual export volumes in 2023/24 MY at 3.2-3.4 mln tons.
“So far, the work of Nibulon’s logistics infrastructure is divided between two channels. After the work of the Black Sea ports resumed thanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a significant part of the grain volumes we exported through the ‘river’ was reoriented to the ‘big water’. At the same time, the Danube continues to play a key role for our exports: the share of this channel in the sales structure is 70%,” said Volodymyr Slavinsky, Nibulon’s trading director, as quoted by the press service.
The grain trader considers the achieved results to be its undisputed victory, as it works to connect Ukrainian farmers with international markets and to maintain global food security.
JV Nibulon LLC was established in 1991. Prior to the Russian military invasion, the grain trader had 27 transshipment terminals and crop reception complexes, capacity for simultaneous storage of 2.25 million tons of agricultural products, a fleet of 83 vessels (including 23 tugs), and owned the Mykolaiv Shipyard.
“Before the war, Nibulon cultivated 82 thousand hectares of land in 12 regions of Ukraine and exported agricultural products to more than 70 countries. In 2021, the grain trader exported the highest ever 5.64 million tons of agricultural products, reaching record volumes of supplies to foreign markets in August – 0.7 million tons, in the fourth quarter – 1.88 million tons, and in the second half of the year – 3.71 million tons.
Nibulon’s losses due to Russia’s full-scale military invasion in 2022 exceeded $416 million.
Currently, the grain trader is operating at 32% of capacity, has created a special unit to clear agricultural land of mines, and was forced to move its headquarters from Mykolaiv to Kyiv.
