Ambassador of the European Union (EU) to Ukraine Matti Maasikas has said that the European Union will continue supporting Ukraine on the way of reforms and European integration. Tomorrow Ukraine marks the 6th anniversary of the beginning of the Revolution of Dignity, which radically changed and reoriented the modern history of the country, he said at a meeting of the Ukrainian government on Wednesday. He said that the Ukrainian people have already paid and continue to pay a high price for the European choice. The country took up this challenge while it is defending its territorial integrity and sovereignty, he said.
For the sake of the values and principles that we share, you can count on the indestructible support of the European Union, Maasikas said.
Speaking about the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement, Maasikas said that it is the contractual basis of Ukraine-EU bilateral relations.
He said that among the vital reforms are the fight against corruption, progress in the field of digital technologies, energy, and environmental protection.
“The demand for reforms in these areas will sound louder from your citizens than our requests to fulfill the obligations of the agreement,” the ambassador said.
He also said that since 2014, the EU has mobilized EUR 15 billion in grants and loans to support reforms in Ukraine.
The EU welcomes the government’s intentions to deepen cooperation in the energy and digital space, Maasikas said.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) together with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) will finance a program of support for bioenergy development worth over $50 million, Lesya Kuzmenko, the EBRD Deputy Head in Ukraine, has said.
“The program is aimed at technologies and systems for collection, storage and processing of agrobiomass. We plan to mobilize about $50 million for its implementation,” she said at the official opening of the program “Sustainable Bioenergy Value Chain Innovation” in Ukraine.
The leading engineer of the EBRD in Ukraine, Tetiana Markuta, clarified that the total amount of the four-year program is $55.8 million, and it is planned to launch it from the fourth quarter of 2019. According to her, the Global Environment Facility provides grant support under the program.
Most of these funds – $50 million – will be issued for lending to bioenergy projects in the private sector, and another $3.5 million for incentive grants, she said. The remaining funds are to be used for information support and educational projects in the field of bioenergy.
“We will look at options for possible stimulation of the development of bioenergy within the framework of the program and choose two or three areas that will be most beneficial for Ukraine,” she added.
She noted that the support is designed for companies in the field of agriculture and logistics, companies that can work with waste, as well as those that produce and process biomass.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has amended the Action Plan on Implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU, the press service of the Ukrainian government reported. “The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted a resolution amending the Action Plan on Implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU. The updated plan takes into account the deepening of the Ukraine-EU bilateral relations and a series of decisions adopted by the bilateral bodies of the Association Agreement in recent years,” reads the statement.
The amended document actualizes, aligns and streamlines the objectives with the dynamically evolving EU legislation. The updated tasks are related to customs and financial policy; taxation, entrepreneurship, financial services and competition; justice, social and humanitarian issues; transport; energy economy and energy efficiency; digital sphere, science, technology and innovation; nature management and others.
It is expected that the government’s decision will accelerate Ukraine’s advancement towards the EU and make this process more transparent.
Ukraine imported 9.183 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas for $1.801 billion in January-September 2019, including 1.481 bcm for $264.725 million in September, the State Statistics Service has said. The average price of gas imported by the country in September 2019 was $178.8 per 1,000 cubic meters, up 12.8% from $158.5 in August.
The main suppliers in January-September 2019 were companies from Switzerland with 4.05 bcm for $769.631 million, Germany – 2.827 bcm for $546.666 million, Czech Republic – 478.645 mcm for $91.23 million, Hungary – 462.888 mcm for $88.617 million, Poland – 342.778 mcm for $71.695 million, France – 356.617 mcm for $69.983 million, Austria – 267.171 mcm for $72.437 million, the U.K. – 154,599 mcm for $38.112 million, Luxembourg – 133.663 mcm for $32.256 million, Slovakia – 92.011 mcm for $16.215 million, Italy – 16.893 mcm for $3.487 million and Bulgaria – 1.4 mcm for $0.255 million.
Gas was not imported from Russia for the indicated period.
Ukraine imported 10.39 bcm for $3.12 billion in 2018.
Ukraine in January-October 2019 increased import of manganese ore and concentrate in natural terms by 29.4% compared to the same period in 2018, to 1.027 million tonnes.
According to customs statistics released by the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, imports of manganese ore and concentrate in monetary terms grew by 18.7%, to $183.574 million.
Major imports were made from Ghana (75.99% of deliveries in monetary terms), Russia (20.46%), and Georgia (3.1%).
In January-October 2019, Ukraine exported 27,026 tonnes of manganese ore and concentrate for the amount of $2.587 to Hungary (40.59%), Slovakia (23.04%) and the Czech Republic (19.87%), while in January-October 2018 the country exported 53,617 tonnes for $3.527 million.
As reported, Ukraine in 2018 reduced import of manganese ore and concentrate in natural terms by 27.9% compared to 2017, to 938,946 tonnes. Imports of manganese ore and concentrate in monetary terms fell by 18.2%, to $182.788 million.
Major imports were made from Ghana (57.5% of deliveries in monetary terms), the Republic of South Africa (16.74%), and Russia (17.98%).
In 2018, Ukraine reduced export and re-export of manganese ore and concentrate in natural terms by 31.1%, to 59,597 tonnes, in monetary terms – by 19%, to $3.829 million. Exports and re-exports were carried out to Hungary (40.35% of deliveries), Slovakia (21.6%), and the Czech Republic (23.32%).
In Ukraine, manganese ore is mined and enriched at the Ordzhonikidze and Marhanets ore-mining and dressing mills (both based in Dnipropetrovsk region).
Dnipro-based PrivatBank controls the Stakhanov and Zaporizhia ferroalloy plants, Ordzhonikidze and Marhanets mills.
Nikopol ferroalloy plant (NFP) is controlled by EastOne Group, founded in autumn 2007 as a result of Interpipe Group restructuring, and Privat Group.
The seaports of Ukraine in January-October 2019 handled 129.8 million tonnes of cargo, which is 20.2% more compared to the same period in 2018. According to the press service of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority, the volume of grain and ore transshipment for the indicated period increased by more than a third.
At the same time, compared with the same period in 2018, the volume of grain transshipment grew by 37% (43.6 million tonnes), ore by 33% (30.5 million tonnes).
Transshipment of liquid cargo (oil, petroleum products, and others) rose by 9.6%, to 9.3 million tonnes.
In addition, according to data for January-October, the trend of container handling growth continues: in the ten months it increased by 19% (812,000 TEU).
The volume of exports increased by 24% compared with the same period of the previous year, imports by 12%, transit by 8%.
Among Ukrainian ports, five ports became the leaders in transshipment in the ten months, which provided the processing of more than 90% of the total cargo volume.
Over the ten months, the sea ports of Ukraine handled 9,800 ships, and increased the volume by 2.1% from last year’s figure.
