Retailer Auchan Ukraine started importing salt from Poland, Romania and Hungary back in March to cover a possible shortage of State Enterprise Artyomsol (Soledar, Donetsk region), located in the war zone with Russian occupiers.
The trade network has already established salt imports in April, and Ukrainians do not have to worry about the summer season of canning vegetables, the company’s press service said in response to an inquiry from Interfax-Ukraine on Thursday.
“There is European-made salt on the shelves of Auchan, which costs around UAH 25-30. We plan to sell salt of the following categories: extra, iodized, and even rock salt. The main reason for the shortage of salt is excessive demand. Employees of Auchan hypermarkets literally do not have time exhibit it, and sometimes a stock of two or three weeks is sold in a day,” the press service of the company specified.
According to her, the import of salt from Europe has been established, only within a week the retailer will receive 150 tons of salt, including 50 tons in the coming days.
“The main goal of Auchan in Ukraine is to continue to purchase products from local manufacturers. But since at the moment not all enterprises are working, respectively, not all the needs of the population are covered, the company is ready to cover critical consumption goods by attracting Auchan Poland, Auchan Hungary “and Auchan Romania. As soon as Ukrainian enterprises resume work, Auchan will again give priority to local producers,” the company’s press service summed up.
Auchan Retail is an international retail company, the first store opened in France in 1961.
Auchan Ukraine Hypermarket LLC has been operating in Ukraine since 2008. According to the Auchan website, before the Russian invasion, it had more than 30 stores of various formats (hypermarkets, supermarkets, pick up points) in nine cities, and is also developing e-commerce.
Yoghurt, kefir, mineral water, raw tobacco, salt, hydrogen, photographic plates and film, doors, windows and their frames, cigarette paper, cotton wool, tights, socks and bras, bags and packaging bags are new items included in the list goods of critical import of Ukraine.
According to government resolution No. 266 of March 13, which was published on its website, the list is also replenished with glass and mirrors, silver, various types of metal products, aluminum metal structures, pumps, printed circuits, trailers and semi-trailers.
As reported, after the start of Russia’s military aggression on February 24, the government on the same day by resolution No. 153 determined a list of critical import goods, for the purchase of which the National Bank of Ukraine allows buying foreign currency. This is the tenth expansion of this list since it was originally approved.
BAGS, BRAS, COTTON WOOL, DOORS, FRAMES, IMPORT, MINERAL WATER, RAW TOBACCO, SALT, SOCKS, WINDOWS, YOGHURT
State-owned enterprise Artyomsol (Donetsk region) in January-July 2021 produced and processed 923,500 tonnes of salt, which is 6.9% higher than its planned indicators and 70.3% more than the values of the same period 2020.
“We continue to strengthen our positions in export markets and increase shipments of products to the near and far abroad countries. At the same time, the volumes of supplies to the domestic market are also growing. We will continue to work in this direction and plan to maintain the growth trend until the end of the year,” Artyomsol head Viktoria Lutsenko said.
According to a press release, for seven months of 2021, demand has grown for almost all types of products manufactured by the enterprise. The largest increase was seen in unpacked (bulk) salt shipments, twice, to 702,700 tonnes (76% of the total production).
At the same time, in July, the extraction and processing of salt amounted to 141,500 tonnes of salt, which is 18.2% higher than the planned indicators and by 72.8%, the figures for July 2020.
The report also specifies that in August state-owned enterprise Artyomsol overcame the salt production rate of 1 million tonnes.
The state enterprise Artyomsol (Donetsk region) in January-November 2020 produced more than 1.03 million tonnes of salt, which is 43.8% less than in the same period last year, the company has told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to a statement on the website of the state-owned enterprise, in November 2020 Artyomsol produced 132,900 tonnes of salt, the highest figure in the 11 months of this year.
“Now we are in a difficult situation, a number of problems have been accumulating at the enterprise for years. In addition to external factors, Artyomsol was burdened with unfavorable and dubious contracts. We are reviewing our contractual relations and applying the principle of openness. A contract campaign has been announced on our website, everyone can apply for the intention to cooperate. Unfortunately, not all partners with whom we have completed cooperation on contracts agree with this decision,” head of the enterprise Viktoria Lutsenko said.
She also pointed out that the enterprise is developing a comprehensive anti-crisis program, which includes increasing the profitability of the enterprise, modernizing production, raising workers’ wages.
Artyomsol is one of the largest enterprises for the extraction and sale of sodium chloride (NaCl) in Central and Eastern Europe. The production facilities of Artyomsol are located in Soledar, Donetsk region. The company exports its products to 15 countries of the world.
State-owned enterprise Artyomsol (Donetsk region) produced over 1.48 million tonnes of salt in January-September, which is 2.6% more than a year ago.
According to the report on the website of the state-owned enterprise, from the beginning of the year, Artyomsol produced 338,500 tonnes of bulk milled salt, which is 20.7% higher than in January-September 2018.
The output of salt packaged in flexible containers increased 13%, to 49,300 tonnes, salt blocks – by 15%, to 2,300 tonnes.
At the same time, according to the information of the SOE for the first nine months of this year, the production of packaged salt decreased by 8.9%, to 134,700 tonnes. Production of salt packed in bags was less than 4.9%, salt briquettes – 18.7% compared with the same period a year earlier. In addition, iodized salt production was 13.1% less (only 41,700 tonnes).
The state-owned enterprise said that 763,100 tonnes of salt were shipped to foreign consumers in January-September 2019, which is 8% more compared to the same period in 2018.
Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania remain the main importers of Artyomsol products.
“The results of the enterprise’s work were significantly affected by the steadily increasing cost of transportation of goods by rail by Ukrzaliznytsia. This factor reduces the competitiveness of salt of the Ukrainian producer,” the company said.
Artyomsol is the largest enterprise for extraction and sale of sodium chloride (NaCl) in Central and Eastern Europe. Its production facilities are located in Soledar (Donetsk region). The company exports products to 15 countries.
The State Automobile Roads Agency of Ukraine (Ukravtodor) plans in 2019 to purchase nearly 200,000 tonnes of salt in 2019 for preparing the roads for winter, Ukravtodor acting head of Slawomir Nowak said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
“We are preparing [for winter], held first conferences over this issue. Purchase of salt volumes is under control, 41,000 tonnes have already been stored up. In general, we plan to purchase about 200,000 tonnes of salt this year. It would be enough to sustain winter facing no problems,” he said.
Novak noted that this week a meeting between Ukravtodor and the state-owned enterprise Artyomsol (Donetsk region) is to take place, during which it is planned to “settle a number of problematic issues.”
In addition, the head of the agency said that Ukravtodor has already prepared more than 2,700 of machinery items and devices for winter.
“For temporary parking of vehicles during bad weather we plan to use more than 800 sites right of way, near and at road service facilities. In addition, more than 7,000 linear meters of passive means of cleaning snow will be installed on public roads of national importance,” he said.
According to Nowak, by November 1, 2019 Ukravtodor plans to complete the full range of measures to prepare the road facilities for the autumn-winter period 2019-2020.
Artyomsol is the largest enterprise for production and sale of table salt (NaCl) in Central and Eastern Europe. Its production facilities are located in Soledar (Donetsk region).
