The voluntary restructuring of feed-in tariff in wind energy is possible subject to other market reforms, according to a letter from foreign developers of large wind farms, namely NBT, Windkraft Ukraine, LongWing Energy, Greenworx Holding and Akuo Energy, which was sent to President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in late October.
According to the document, the restructuring may concern new wind farms or expansion of existing facilities, which will be commissioned on the basis of preliminary electricity sale and purchase contracts signed by the end of 2019, with the exception of projects or their stages being under construction or already having a financing agreement.
As an example, wind farm developers are considering a 5.0–7.5% reduction in the feed-in tariff rate for the wind farm project portfolio with a capacity of 1.9 GW compared to the feed-in tariff defined for wind farms for 2020–2022 in exchange for extension of the term of electricity sales contracts up to 15 years from the date putting wind farms into commercial operation.
At the same time, the authors of the letter oppose retrospective changes in the renewable energy market, drawing the head of state’s attention to the fact that the consequences of this option will be the loss of about $2.5 billion of direct investment, as well as the exit from the sector of foreign investors. According to the companies’ estimates, foreign investment in wind energy has already reached $1.2 billion, and an additional $2.5 billion is planned for the next three years.
In their opinion, the consequences of any retrospective changes to the previously approved by the law schemes for supporting wind energy incentives will be more significant than the problem of financing Guaranteed Buyer state enterprise.
Ukrainian enterprises in January-October 2019 decreased exports of ferrous scrap metal by 87.2% compared to the same period of 2018, to 40,736 tonnes (316,196 tonnes in January-October 2018). According to customs statistics released by the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, exports of scrap metal in monetary terms fell by 89%, to $11.31 million ($102.5 million a year ago).
Some 103 tonnes of scrap metal was exported October, 3,551 tonnes in September, 155,000 in August, 204,000 tonnes in July, 208,000 tonnes in June, 8,068 tonnes in May, 8,791 tonnes in April, 8,246 in March, 8,252 tonnes in February and 3,140 tonnes in January.
At the same time, in January-October 2019, the country increased imports of scrap metal in kind by 46% compared to January-October 2018, to 45,669 tonnes. Imports in monetary terms increased 1.8%, to $29.495 million.
Imports of scrap metal for the mentioned period arrived mainly from Turkey (59.16% of deliveries in monetary terms), Russia (31.64%), and the Netherlands (2.26%); and major exports were shipped to Turkey (86.71%), the Netherlands (6.45%) and Germany (4.84%).
Ukrainian metal companies in January-October 2019 imported 1,462 tonnes of ferrous products obtained by direct reduction of iron ore (HS code 7203) – hot briquetted iron (HBI), which is a substitute for pig iron and scrap metal. The HBI was imported from Russia through July-August for a total value of $478,000 when 1,539 tonnes of HBI was imported through January-September 2018 with a total value of $509,000.
As reported, Ukrainian enterprises in 2018 decreased exports of ferrous scrap metal by 33% compared to 2017, to 327,547 tonnes. Exports of scrap metal in monetary terms fell by 13.3%, to $105.646 million.
The harvest of grain and leguminous crops in Ukraine in 2019, according to preliminary data, will be about 74 million tonnes, which is 4 million tonnes more than in 2018, Economy Minister Tymofiy Mylovanov has stated.
“In particular, wheat will amount to 28.1 million tonnes (3.5 million tonnes more), corn to 35 million tonnes (800,000 tonnes less), and barley to 8.9 million tonnes (1.6 million tonnes more),” he wrote on Facebook.
Oleh Bakhmatiuk and his Ukrlandfarming agricultural holding at the end of October sent an official offer to the Individuals’ Deposit Guarantee Fund as an arbitration manager for the phased repayment of UAH 8 billion of debts to VAB Bank and Bank Financial Initiative owned by the businessman and withdrawn from the market, and on making a UAH 500 million guarantee fee. “Then UAH 1 billion a year. This offers remains valid, and I am actively working to ensure such financing,” Bakhmatiuk told Interfax-Ukraine.
He said that last week he had been actively negotiating in the Middle East, in particular with representatives of Cargill.
“I didn’t run anywhere, I’m actively working,” the businessman commented on reports of an alleged escape in connection with the arrests within the VAB Bank case in Ukraine that began on November 11.
Bakhmatiuk noted that in the coming days he would continue negotiations with trading companies and investors on the previously outlined program, but then he plans to return to Ukraine and will work with lawyers.
According to him, Ukrlandfarming annually produces 2.5 million tonnes of grain and under such commodity flows would be able to attract money necessary for the phased payment of debts.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the government of Qatar have signed a protocol amending and supplementing the agreement on air traffic.
According to the website of the Infrastructure Ministry of Ukraine, the corresponding document was signed during the meeting of Infrastructure Minister Vladyslav Krykliy with President of the Civil Aviation Authority of Qatar Abdullah bin Nasser Turki Al Subaey.
“We are liberalizing air traffic between Ukraine and the state of Qatar. The signing of today’s protocol will allow expanding the access of airlines of both countries to the air transportation market, eliminating restrictions on the number of flights, types of aircraft, and also destinations in the territories of both countries,” the minister said.
In addition, the minister of infrastructure noted that the signing of the protocol would ensure the creation and operation of a reliable legal mechanism of an international level for the implementation and intensification of the process of bilateral interstate relations between the states, and will also contribute to the development of cooperation in the field of air transport, tourism and the further expansion of the geography of the airlines’ flights.
The Qatari official, in turn, noted that the signing of this document opens up new opportunities and testifies to the cooperation of Ukraine and Qatar at the highest level.
Finance Minister of Ukraine Oksana Markarova has said that in two years Ukraine seeks to cut state debt to 40% of GDP and will strive for deficit-free budget in the future. She said on the Freedom of Speech by Savik Shuster program on the Ukraina TV Channel last week that permanent restructuring of state deb is unfavorable, as it would give the country fewer resources today than reputation losses.
“Ukraine has always been very unpredictable. We rapidly increased our debt from 2006 to 2008, then it also grew rapidly from 2013 to 2014, because it was in foreign currency, because in 2013, three billion in foreign currency was borrowed. We need to move away from this. That is, now we are again reducing debt compared with GDP, and this year it is less than 60%,” Markarova said.
The finance minister said that for 2020 the goal is to reduce public debt to 52% of GDP, and “in two years to reach even 40%.” “This will give us the opportunity of living like European countries: when they need development, they borrow money, when they do not need it, they do not borrow. Because debt in itself is not bad, it is bad when we take a debt and live on it,” she said.
Markarova said that therefore, next year the budget deficit will be only 2% of GDP, this year it is 3.2%. “That is, we will constantly try to come to a budget without deficits, and this will give us the opportunity of absolutely resolving all our debt issues and direct the money we earn to important and priority issues,” she said.
The minister also assured that the Ukrainian authorities constantly communicate with international partners, investors and gives all the information about what the country is going to do. “For the first time last year we adopted a debt strategy and now we are constantly telling how we will reduce this debt,” the finance minister said.
