Ukraine and Denmark have signed a cooperation agreement that opens up opportunities for companies working with green energy, among other things, the press service of the Ministry of Energy said.
“The agreement between the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Denmark will mark a new stage in deepening intergovernmental cooperation, which will focus on strengthening the environment for sustainable energy solutions and technologies based on Danish experience and technical assistance, as well as opportunities for companies working with ‘green’ energy,” the message says.
According to Minister of Energy of Ukraine Herman Haluschenko, “Denmark is one of the European leaders in the implementation of the transition to ‘green’ energy. Ukraine, in turn, shares the goals of the European Green Deal. Therefore, I see significant potential for deepening cooperation between our states in the development of renewable sources of energy and enhancing energy security.”
The press service of the Ministry of Energy noted that Ukraine is making significant efforts to implement projects aimed at reducing traditional energy consumption, increasing energy efficiency and introducing energy-saving technologies. The draft National Energy Efficiency Action Plan developed by the Ministry of Energy provides for a decrease in final energy consumption by more than 17% by 2030.
In its turn, the Danish Energy Agency will contribute in the form of consultations, technical assistance and mutual training of specialists from the Ukrainian energy sector.
“The energy partnership with Denmark will help improve conditions for the introduction of the latest environmentally friendly energy technologies and attracting investments in sustainable energy,” Haluschenko said.
The Eastern Partnership Summit will take place in December, EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy Josep Borrell said in Brussels on Thursday following a meeting with the foreign ministers of the three Eastern Partnership countries – Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia.
The ministers of the three countries visited the EU capital for the first time in the format of the so-called Associated Trio.
“This year is an important year for the Eastern Partnership. Together with the Commission, we are in the process of finalizing the post-2020 agenda, which contains concrete deliverables and targets. Our Eastern Partnership summit will take place in December. I understand that all of us are sorry for the fact that it has [previously] been postponed, as has also happened with other summits. But in December, when this summit will take place, we will have an opportunity to set this new agenda in motion, and to agree on a common vision for the future,” he said.
Borrell said the EU is looking forward to further development of relations with the countries of the Eastern Partnership, which are “based on the principles of inclusivity and differentiation. Both have to be taken together and this will require flexibility from both parts.”
At Kyiv Security Forum, organized by Arseniy Yatsenyuk’s Open Ukraine Foundation on Wednesday, some 12 points were presented to strengthen the strategic partnership between the United States and Ukraine.
According to the document, titled “12 Points of Strategic Partnership Between the United States and Ukraine,” the arrival of President of the United States Joseph Biden and the new U.S. Administration offers an opportunity to deepen the strategic partnership and commitment between the United States and Ukraine, as well as advance the interests of both states.
“We, American and Ukrainian politicians and diplomats, former officials, experts and public figures, urge the governments of both countries to develop an ambitious and comprehensive agenda that will deepen our strategic relationship. This agenda should promote mutual interests, contribute to strengthening security and stability in Central and Eastern Europe, promote Ukraine’s further integration into the EU and NATO membership, and outline and prioritize transformative democratic reforms necessary for the full development of Ukraine’s economy and its transatlantic movement progress,” according to a statement.
The officials said in the document that mutual dedication to strengthening democratic values must always remain at the core of the U.S. and Ukrainian relations.
“This implies strengthening democracy and the rule of law, individual freedom, freedom of speech, full independence of the judiciary and anti-corruption institutions, greater transparency and accountability of government actions and open governance, independence of the media and an active civil society. Solidarity and concrete actions to promote these values are needed to strengthening mutual trust, understanding the democratic aspirations of Ukrainians and providing a common basis for cooperation between both countries,” the experts said.
They said the United States and Ukraine must act together to restore Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and contain further Russian aggression.
“This implies expanding our strategic partnership and defense cooperation and the United States seeking new opportunities to increase defense assistance in order to strengthen Ukraine’s ability to deter Russia’s offensive. This means continuing to provide lethal defense assistance and strengthening the Navy. Other areas of possible military cooperation include the development of special operations forces, anti-aircraft and coastal defense,” the officials said in the document.
Its signatories believe that the United States and Ukraine must maintain close dialogue in order to increase the Kremlin’s cost of continued Russian aggression against Ukraine. The United States should also consult closely with Europe on this issue, in particular on strengthening sanctions.
They believe that such negotiations, as well as negotiations with Russia on Ukraine, should be based on the principle “nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.”
“In consultations with Ukraine and its European partners, the Joseph Biden Administration should explore the possibilities of more active involvement at the highest level by the United States in the negotiation process, which is now being conducted by the German Chancellor and the French President, in order to break the situation and contribute to a real end to the conflict in Donbas , the withdrawal of all Russian and Russian-controlled forces and the restoration of Ukraine’s full sovereignty over Donbas,” the experts said in the document.
The experts also said the United States and Ukraine should also consult on the political, diplomatic and economic steps necessary to bring Crimea back to Ukraine.
“They must work together to ensure international compliance with the principle ‘Crimea is Ukraine’ and maintain the sanctions adopted against Russia for the illegal seizure of the peninsula. We welcome the efforts of the Ukrainian government to create the Crimean Platform as an initiative that will keep the issue of occupied Crimea on the international agenda of the day and remind people, including Russia, that Crimea remains Ukrainian in the eyes of the international community,” according to the document.
In addition, the signatories to the document believe that the United States and Ukraine should consult on steps to strengthen security and stability in the Black Sea region, in particular with the support of NATO and European partners.
“The United States, together with NATO allies, should continue to regularly deploy air, land and sea forces in the region where Russia, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Caucasus converge,” the experts said.
It also noted that in recent years, the United States and Ukraine have become targets of Russian political intervention, disinformation campaigns and cyber attacks.
“They should exchange their experience and share best practices in combating these and other forms of Russian hybrid warfare,” according to the recommendations.
It is stressed that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, if completed, would threaten Euro-Atlantic unity and deprive Ukraine of significant transit revenues.
“The United States and Ukraine should consult on how to build and maintain a transatlantic position against the completion of the pipeline, as well as actions that Russia can take against Ukraine to lift the Nord Stream 2 sanctions. At the same time, Ukraine should undertake major reforms to improve energy efficiency and root out corruption in this and other sectors,” the experts said in the statement.
The experts said the United States and Ukraine must work together to advance Ukraine’s NATO integration and Kyiv’s ultimate goal of NATO membership.
“The United States must firmly adhere to NATO’s open door policy and advise Kyiv on how best to prepare for membership, as NATO leaders pledged at the Bucharest summit in 2008. Ukraine must commit to the necessary reforms and practical steps that will lead to its military and other security and defense structures are in line with NATO standards and norms,” according to the document.
It is noted that Ukraine’s membership in NATO will strengthen the North Atlantic Alliance, contribute to the historical unification of Europe and create the preconditions for the transformation of relations with Russia.
Moreover, the renewed U.S.-Ukrainian partnership is associated with the willingness of the Ukrainian authorities to quickly implement transformational democratic reforms and actively act to protect and strengthen the independence of such key institutions as the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and others.
“For a strong anti-corruption work, effective reforms of the prosecutor’s office and the judicial system are necessary. Ukraine must also make irreversible the significant reforms already achieved, in particular in the areas of the land market, privatization of state-owned enterprises, the independence of the National Bank of Ukraine, decentralization, transparency of fiscal and budgetary policies in addition to reforms in the gas sector, reforms in the public procurement system and on the transparency of assets and incomes of civil servants and parliamentarians,” the experts said in the document.
In addition, important are steps to remove the excessive influence of oligarchs, establish the rule of law with fair economic norms and practices for large, medium, small and foreign businesses, as well as to strengthen the institutional capacity of the Ukrainian state – all this is crucial for improving the lives of Ukrainian citizens, the experts said.
They said Ukraine should ensure the protection of property rights for all Ukrainian and foreign investors.
“While the Ukrainian authorities should urgently focus on reform, seeing them as urgent tasks, the United States, in coordination with international financial institutions, the European Union and partners from the Group of Seven (G7), should continue to provide support helping Ukraine build a modern democratic an economy fully compatible with the standards and norms of the European Union. In this sense, Copenhagen criteria of the EU form a clear roadmap. Such assistance should directly depend on the implementation of effective reforms,” according to the document.
Among the American signers are Francis Fukuyama; former Deputy Secretary General of NATO Alexander Vershbow; former Ambassadors of the United States to Ukraine John Herbst, Marie Yovanovitch, Steven Pifer, Roman Popadiuk, William Taylor, as well as members of the United States Congress, high-ranked diplomats and well-known experts.
Among the Ukrainian signers are Chairman of the Kyiv Security Forum and Prime Minister of Ukraine in 2014-2016 Arseniy Yatsenyuk; Deputy Chairwoman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Olena Kondratiuk; Co-chair of Lviv Security Forum and former Deputy Chairwoman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 2014-2019 Oksana Syroid; former Secretaries of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Volodymyr Horbulin, Oleksandr Turchunov and Andriy Parubiy; Chairwoman of the Parliamentary Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze; public figures Josef Zissels and Myroslav Marynovych; diplomats Volodymyr Ohryzko, Danylo Lubkivsky, Valeriy Chaly, Kostiantyn Yelisieiev, Volodymyr Vasylenko, Yuri Scherbak, Oleh Shamshur, Oleksandr Motsyk, Volodymyr Handogiy, Roman Bezsmertnyi, as well as members of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine from the Servants of the People, European Solidarity, Holos and Batkivschyna factions.
ARSENIY YATSENYUK, KYIV SECURITY FORUM, PARTNERSHIP, UKRAINE, UNITED STATES
Ukraine is planning to implement the first pilot public-private partnership (PPP) projects in the road industry, transferring six highways to concession.
A source in the industry told Interfax-Ukraine that the first sections and routes for PPP implementation will be offered:
– a section of the M-03 road from Boryspil to Poltava;
– a section of the M-06 road from Kyiv to Rivne;
– the route from Dnipro to Kryvy Rih and Mykolaiv (М-04, Н-11);
– the route Yahodyn – Kovel – Lutsk (М-07, М-19);
– the route Kharkiv – Dnipro – Zaporizhia (M-29, M-04, M-18);
– a section of the M-14 road from Kherson to Mykolaiv.
At the same time, a private investor will undertake the obligation to update and develop the existing road, and funds will be allocated from the Road Fund to support the investor, provided that he observes all obligations on the quality of road maintenance.
Instead of collection of fares, it is planned that the investor will earn by developing roadside infrastructure: gas stations, catering establishments, advertising space, etc.
According to Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladyslav Krykliy, the implementation of the entire program will allow in the medium term to attract more than $9 billion of private investment in the restoration and maintenance of more than 4,500 kilometers of national highways.
The first public-private partnership program in the road sector of Ukraine is planned to be presented in Kyiv on October 29, 2020.
The Ukrainian-Indonesian company Pravitna Genius Sel in partnership with the Canadian company Immunitor (Vancouver) plans to launch pharmaceutical production in Kyiv region by the end of the year.
Freddy Cahyono, the CEO of Provitna Genius Sel, told Interfax-Ukraine that the respective agreement of intent was signed on October 7 by the representatives of the companies with the participation of the Indonesian Embassy in Ukraine.
Pravitna Genius Sel’s investments in launching production in Kyiv region amounted to about $1 million. By the end of 2020, the company plans to obtain a GMP certificate.
One of the first drugs, the production of which is planned by Pravitna Genius Sel, will be a drug that will stimulate the immune system, which will not only treat diseases, but also prevent their occurrence.
For the production of the drug, Canadian raw materials will be used. Freddy Cahyono noted that the drug, which will be produced in Ukraine, is to be exported abroad, in particular to Indonesia. By the end of the year, the company intends to register the medicine in Ukraine.
In turn, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Ukraine Yuddy Chrisnandi noted the high export potential of the drugs produced in Ukraine.
“These drugs will be able to be used not only in Ukraine, but throughout the world, including in Indonesia. I hope that they will contribute to the fight against epidemics,” he said.
KYIV REGION, PARTNERSHIP, PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTION, PRAVITNA
The partnership of Canadian Vermilion Energy Inc. and Ukrgazvydobuvannia in a joint project on development of three oil and gas fields in Ukraine under production sharing agreements (PSA) is now 50/50, according to its second quarter year report.
“Entering Ukraine aligns with our strategy to capitalize on opportunities in under-exploited basins by using modern technologies to improve success rates and recovery,” reads the document.
Vermilion said that subsequent to the end of the second quarter of 2019, it entered into a 50/50 partnership with Ukrgazvydobuvannia and were awarded two exploration licenses in Ukraine, subject to a final production sharing agreement.
“The licenses cover approximately 585,000 gross acres situated in one of Europe’s most prolific natural gas regions (Dniprovsko-Donetsky Basin). The new licenses are in close proximity to several multiTCF gas fields with most of the basin (and awarded license areas) still uncovered by 3D seismic. The terms of the licenses include a modest capital commitment, back-loaded over a five-year time frame,” reads the report posted on the company’s website.
As earlier reported, Canada’s Vermilion Energy jointly with a Ukrainian company (Ukrgazvydobuvannia) has won the right to develop three oil and gas fields in Ukraine.
On July 1, an interdepartmental commission for organizing the conclusion and implementation of the product sharing agreements (PSA) prepared for the government proposals on the winners in nine continental hydrocarbon sectors put up for auctions. Among them are Ukrgazvydobuvannia in alliance with Vermilion for Balakliyske and Ivanivske fields, Ukrgazvydobuvannia for Berestianske and Buzivske, private company Ukrnaftoburinnia for Rusanivske, U.S. Aspect Energy for Varvynske, DTEK for Zinkivske, Geo Alliance for Sofiyivske and Zakhidnadraservis for Uhnivske fields.
The head of the office of the National Investment Council, Yulia Kovaliv, said that now within two months companies must agree on the contracts themselves and sign agreements with the government in order to start exploration as soon as possible and to start work as soon as possible. She also said that the volume of investments of the winning companies is $430 million in the pessimistic scenario.
According to Vermilion report, its quarterly production volumes by approximately 1,300 boe/d and FFO by approximately $11 million, we recorded corporate production of approximately 103,000 boe/d, little changed from the previous quarter.
