The State Highway Agency of Ukraine (“Ukravtodor”) is preparing for winter by diversifying the supply of technical salt.
“We started preparing for winter in advance. To date, the remaining anti-icing materials from last year are 25,000 tons of technical salt and 159,000 tons of friction materials. We will prepare 283,000 tons of friction materials and 89,000 tons at the beginning of the deterioration of weather conditions . tons of technical salt (50% of the normative need for the entire autumn-winter period). We are preparing, we have the equipment, by the way, this season we plan to attract 4,885 units of equipment and mechanisms,” said Andriy Ivko, the first deputy head of Ukravtodor, in an interview of the “Interfax-Ukraine” agency.
He noted that in connection with the stoppage of work of State Enterprise “Artemsil” due to hostilities in the region and its termination of the supply of technical salt in “Ukravtodor” they were able to find alternative suppliers of this resource.
“We monitored other deposits and production in our country and found an alternative in the west: the Stebnytske deposit of potassium salts in the Lviv region and the Bushtyn deposit in the Zakarpattia region, as well as the bischophyte deposits in the Poltava region. We have already conducted technical tests of the materials – the available raw materials are not inferior in quality the one we purchased earlier, and sometimes it is even better in terms of material meltability,” Ivko noted.
According to him, in addition to the technical characteristics, “Ukravtodor” also took into account the economic component of such supplies.
“We are also working with our European partners, we are talking about ensuring the possibility of purchasing technical salt from Europe. Therefore, on November 1, 2022, we will be 100% ready for winter,” he said.
According to the first deputy chairman of “Ukravtodor”, there are no questions regarding the procurement of fuel either.
In addition, Ivko reminded that the Operational Headquarters for the Elimination of the Consequences of Emergency Situations works at the base of “Ukravtodor”, which includes representatives of the State Emergency Service, the National Police, the State Transport Security Service, JSC “Automobile Roads of Ukraine”, Kyiv military administration and city state administrations, the All-Ukrainian Association of Motor Carriers and the Association of International Carriers of Ukraine.
The State Agency for Highways of Ukraine (Ukravtodor) is considering the possibility of attracting additional funding for road repairs this year.
“We are considering all possible options, in particular, both credit and grant funds. We are negotiating with our European partners and not only with them about raising funds from various sources. It is too early to talk about any specific decisions and projects, but I think that in a month we will be able to substantively announce the final stage of negotiations and the amounts that we can raise before the end of this year,” Andriy Ivko, first deputy head of Ukravtodor, said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
He noted that even after the agreed deferment of payments on Eurobonds, international partners are ready to meet halfway in matters of attracting additional financing by Ukravtodor.
“Even in civilian life, these are common practices in both the public and private sectors. We have force majeure, the biggest war on the European continent continues, so they meet us halfway. And restructuring will make it easier for us to endure what is happening today. I have from a financial point of view,” he said.
As reported, since August 11, 2022, Ukravtodor, which placed debut Eurobonds worth $700 million maturing in 2028 at a rate of 6.25% in June last year under state guarantees, received the consent of the holders of these securities to defer interest payments on them and transfer their maturity for two years.
The State Agency for Highways of Ukraine (Ukravtodor), which placed its debut Eurobonds worth $700 million at a rate of 6.25% last June under state guarantees, after Ukraine announced a proposal for a two-year deferral of payments on its Eurobonds, is now time is also evaluating options for managing its obligations.
“After this assessment is completed, it is likely that bonds will be followed by a similar liability management exercise in the near future,” Ukravtodor said in a London Stock Exchange announcement on Monday.
Ukraine, in its offer to holders of its sovereign bonds to defer payments on them for two years, indicated that it expects a similar offer from state NPCs Ukrenergo and Ukravtodor for their Eurobonds issued under state guarantees.
In November last year, Ukrenergo placed, under state guarantees, debut five-year “green” Eurobonds worth $825 million with a yield of 6.875% and interest payments twice a year. The proceeds from the issue of Eurobonds were used to pay for electricity produced by RES generation.
As reported, on July 20, Ukraine proposed to holders of Eurobonds from August 1 to defer all payments on them and maturities for two years, while maintaining the current rates of return.
In addition, Ukraine’s international partners within the G7 and the Paris Club of creditors announced their readiness to suspend the payment of Ukraine’s debt until the end of 2023 with the possibility of extending the deferment for another year. They also urged private lenders to accept Ukraine’s offer to defer payments on its Eurobonds and change the terms of its GDP warrants.
According to the website of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, on Friday, July 22, Eurobonds of Ukravtodor were quoted at a price of 17.64% of the face value, which is slightly lower than the quotations of sovereign Eurobonds of the same maturity year (about 20%).
About 23,000 km of public roads have been destroyed as a result of Russia’s armed invasion of Ukraine, of which 8,000 km are state roads; 302 artificial structures were also destroyed.
As Andriy Ivko, First Deputy Head of the State Agency for Highways of Ukraine (Ukravtodor), said on the air of the national telethon, Ukravtodor currently estimates the damage from the destruction of roads by the occupiers at UAH 900 billion.
“Today we are performing work almost throughout the country, but we are clearing and restoring temporary crossings in three regions – Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy,” he said.
According to Ivko, 500 km of roads have already been cleared – these are state roads and communal roads, of which 212 km are the streets of Irpen, Bucha and other cities. In addition, 18 temporary crossings, detours, detours have already been built.
“For example, the highway Kyiv – Chop M-06. A bridge was destroyed in the village of Stoyanka. Now there is already a detour, and we are already restoring it. In addition, I can say about R-30: this is the entrance to Irpen. A temporary crossing was made in less than a week, design and survey work is also being carried out there. We will make a new bridge in this place,” Ivko said.
Earlier it was reported that President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting to develop a plan for the post-war renewal and development of Ukraine. Kirill Timoshenko, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office, said that the restoration of the country at all levels – economic, infrastructural, social – are the main directions included in the plan.
The State Agency for Highways of Ukraine (Ukravtodor) estimates the losses from damage to road infrastructure during the war with Russia at UAH 874 billion. “As of April 3, 23 thousand km of roads and 273 artificial structures – bridges, overpasses, etc. – were destroyed throughout Ukraine. The total amount (losses – IF) that we have already calculated is UAH 874 billion. That is, the restoration of those artificial structures and roads that were destroyed in this war will take such an amount: roads for UAH 835 billion and bridges for UAH 39 billion,” Andriy Ivko, first deputy head of Ukravtodor, said at a briefing at the Ukrainian Media Center on Sunday. He also stressed that Ukravtodor is counting the damage to the road infrastructure on a daily basis. “But we are already preparing for restoration, we are preparing design documentation for roads and bridges. So that when the war ends and we win, we can start work as soon as possible,” Ivko said. Most of the destruction, according to him, suffered roads in the East, South and part of the North of Ukraine.
The State Agency for Tourism Development of Ukraine, the State Agency of Automobile Roads of Ukraine (Ukravtodor) and representatives of investors in the Borzhava and Slavske resorts have signed a memorandum of cooperation in the development of the infrastructure of the Carpathians.
The memorandum, in particular, was signed by Head of the State Agency for Tourism Development Maryana Oleskiv, First Vice President of OKKO Group Vasyl Danyliak, co-owner of the Bukovel tourist complex Oleksandr Shevchenko, legal consultant of Borzhava Asset company Yuriy Chizhmar during the Ukraine 30. Infrastructure forum.
“Cooperation with the state is very important for us, since the infrastructure around the resort is very expensive, and it is practically impossible to implement it without state support. This concerns, first of all, roads, sewerage and water supply and, of course, electricity,” Danyliak said.
“We, as an investor in Bukovel, are ready to build almost the entire infrastructure for the Olympics-2030, together with partners to build facilities that will complement each other so that the Carpathians become a diverse and attractive region for tourists from all over the world,” Shevchenko added.
Chizhmar expressed hope that, according to environmental standards, the development of infrastructure in the region will increase its investment attractiveness.
