Saab is looking to set up production in Ukraine to support the country’s development of independent defence capabilities, the Swedish defence equipment maker’s CEO told Reuters.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has prompted a surge in demand for military equipment, with several Western manufacturers looking to set up production in Ukraine.
“We have to help Ukraine build sovereign capacity and capabilities, so we need to have partnership with Ukrainian industry in Ukraine and also Ukrainian industry that has moved outside of Ukraine,” Saab CEO Micael Johansson said.
He added Saab was in talks with two or three companies on “how to establish local production”, but an agreement was yet to be finalised.
Saab, which competes with the likes of U.S. giant Lockheed Martin, France’s Dassault Aviation and Britain’s BAE Systems, is seeing a boom in demand spurred by global tensions, the war in Ukraine, and Sweden’s recent NATO accession.
Johansson said he saw potential for working with Ukrainian companies on drone capabilities. Ukraine could also be supplier of munitions parts and contribute to the development of sensor technology, he added.
Johansson said the arms industry was pivoting from donation-based aid to direct partnerships with Kyiv.
“I think we are sort of in a movement of going from having countries donating things to Ukraine, which will continue, of course, to having us as an industry delivering directly to the MoD (Ministry of Defence) and the defence forces in Ukraine, which has not happened completely yet, but it’s starting to happen,” he said.
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Beer production in Ukraine in January-August 2024 reached 98.5 million dal, up 6.7% compared to the same period in 2023, according to the website of the industry organization of brewers Ukrpyvo.
“The expert estimate of beer production in Ukraine (excluding non-alcoholic beer) for 8 months of 2024 amounted to 98.5 million dal, which is 106.7% compared to the same period in 2023. At the same time, this figure is only 80.5% of the production volume for 8 months of 2021,” the report says.
Beer production in Ukraine in 2022 decreased by 27.9% compared to 2021 – to 122.8 million dal.
By the end of 2022, the brewing industry had partially recovered from a 50% drop in production in the first quarter due to the Russian invasion and the shutdown of some breweries. Thus, in the first four months of the year, the decline amounted to 42.8% compared to the same period in 2021, 36.4% in January-May, 32% in January-June, 31.6% in January-July and January-August, 30.5% in January-September, 28.6% in January-October, 28.1% in January-November, and 27.9% in the previous year.
During his working visit to New York, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Finnish President Alexander Stubb to discuss the situation on the battlefield, Ukraine’s defense needs, and international cooperation.
According to the press service of the Ukrainian president, “the meeting discussed Ukrainian-Finnish defense cooperation, specifically the joint production of drones and the exchange of experience in this area.”
Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine needs air defense systems, including man-portable air defense systems. He also briefed his interlocutor on the current stage of implementation of the agreements reached during the NATO summit in Washington.
“Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that it is important for Ukraine to obtain permission from its partners and the means to strike deep into Russian territory,” the press service reports.
The parties also discussed what international efforts are needed to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine, as well as the role of the Global South in this process.
Zelenyi Park LLC (Izyaslav, Khmelnytskyi region), which produces corrugated paper (fluting) and containerboard, increased its production by 24.8% in January-August this year compared to the same period in 2023, to UAH 357.3 million.
According to statistics provided by Ukrpapir Association to Interfax-Ukraine, the company slightly accelerated the growth rate of this indicator over the first eight months of the year, up from 22.2% over the first seven months.
In January-August, production in physical terms increased by 10.8% to 20.25 thousand tons. At the same time, in August, the company increased production of fluting and test liners by 12.6% by August 2023 and by 52% by July this year – up to 3.43 thousand tons.
Green Park LLC was registered in 2011 and manufactures products from waste paper.
The factory is equipped with Finnish Valmet equipment, which allows it to produce fluting and testliner with a density of 70 to 200 g/sq m and a roll width of up to 2.8 m.
According to the Clarity Project, the owner of 100% of Zelenyi Park LLC is Cyprus-registered Carton Mill Limited, and the ultimate beneficiaries are Kyiv resident Volodymyr Shandra and co-owner of ATB Corporation Gennadiy Butkevych.
The company ended 2023 with a loss of UAH 78.2 million (56% higher than a year earlier) on a 6.8% drop in revenue to UAH 498.6 million, and in the first half of this year increased revenue by 58.4% to UAH 258 million in January-June 2023, but suffered a loss of more than UAH 47 million.
JSC Slavic Wallpaper-KFTB (Koryukivka, Chernihiv region), a leading Ukrainian wallpaper producer, produced 11.2 million conventional pieces of wallpaper in January-August 2024, up 3.9% compared to the same period in 2023.
According to statistics provided by Ukrpapir Association to Interfax-Ukraine, the company’s output growth rate slowed further in the first eight months of the year compared to the same period last year: it was 8.9% in the first six months and 6.8% in the first seven months.
Also, in monetary terms, the factory’s production volume in January-August increased by 2% to UAH 851.5 million.
In August, the company produced 1.32 million meters of wallpaper, which is 13.8% less than in August-2023 and 15.8% less than in July this year.
The EBA has no data on wallpaper production in Ukraine in January-August 2024, as the State Statistics Service has stopped providing it.
As reported, in 2023, Slavic Wallpaper-KFTB increased its wallpaper production by 19% compared to 2022, to 16.2 million meters, production volume increased by 38.2% to UAH 1 billion 249 million, and net profit increased almost eightfold to UAH 47.7 million.
Earlier, the company noted that as a result of Russian aggression, sales volumes, especially through retail channels, had significantly decreased.
JSC Slavic Wallpaper-KFTB produces more than 10 types of wallpaper from the economy segment (paper, duplex, acrylic) to premium wallpaper (vinyl, non-woven, hot stamped).
In addition, the factory produces its own latex, water-dispersion paint under the Latex brand.
In January-August 2024, JSC Ukrgasvydobuvannya and PJSC Ukrnafta increased commercial gas production by 7.7% (by 0.7 bcm) compared to the same period last year – up to 9.8 bcm.
These data were made public by Oleksiy Chernyshov, CEO of Naftogaz Group, at the European Business Association’s event Global Forecast. Strengthening Unity”.
Chernyshov also clarified that the group’s oil and condensate production during this period amounted to 1.3 million tons, compared to 1.2 million tons in January-August 2023. The plan for the year is 2 million tons, with 1.8 million tons in 2023.
According to him, Naftogaz is one of the largest investors in the country’s economy with an annual volume of investments and capital expenditures of about $2 billion.
Earlier, UGV reported an increase in commercial gas production by 7.2% to 9.26 billion cubic meters over 8 months of 2024.
As reported, Naftogaz’s consolidated quarterly report says that the group’s forecasted commercial gas production for 2024 is expected to reach 14.6 bcm. In February, Chernyshov said that the group’s goal for this year was to get closer to 15 billion cubic meters.
