The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will finance the modernization of infrastructure of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia via the purchase of eurobonds worth almost $100 million, Ukrzaliznytsia Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov wrote on his Facebook page. “Today we signed the framework agreement: the EBRD finances the Ukrzaliznytsia infrastructure project via an additional issue of eurobonds. We received up to $100 million exclusively for infrastructure modernization. Against the background of permanent headline-grabbing tenders for the purchase of anchoring beams, switches this is a signal to the market: tenders will be held in accordance with EBRD rules,” Kravtsov wrote.
He said that the funds raised will go exclusively for the purchase of materials. Ukrzaliznytsia will carry out the work on its own.
The head of Ukrzaliznytsia recalled that over the past two years, the company’s attention has been focused on updating the rolling stock and locomotive fleet.
“Now it is the turn of the railroad track. Firstly, it is safety, secondly, we will increase the throughput, and thirdly, it is a possibility of increasing speed in some sections for both freight and passenger trains, thereby reducing energy-consuming stops,” Kravtsov said.
He also thanked the EBRD and the new Cabinet of Ministers team for helping to implement this agreement.
JSC Ukrzaliznytsia (Kyiv) in several weeks will present a strategy for reforming procurement, Ukrzaliznytsia Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov has said.
“Everyone asks if a conversation has already taken place with the new head of the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladyslav Krykliy. Yes, and very detailed. I can already say about the priority steps. Ukrzaliznytsia has a green light to make order in procurements,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
According to him, in particular, Ukrzaliznytsia intends to create a public council on increasing transparency and procurement efficiency with the participation of representatives of anti-corruption nongovernmental organizations and the media.
In addition, Kravtsov said that Ukrzaliznytsia begins a comprehensive audit at the branch of the Center for the Provision of Production, where, according to him, the largest amount of procurement is made. In addition, an internal audit of the Service Center is ongoing.
“I am tired of reading media reports about obscure tenders and personally canceling them. Such a volume of procurement cannot be coordinated manually. It is good that we respond to signals from the public, but it is bad that we give them reasons [to make these signals],” he said.
A plan on restructuring of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia, which foresees division of the company into three operators (infrastructure, freight and passenger) and a production block, will be prepared by the end of 2019, Ukrzaliznytsia head Yevhen Kravtsov wrote on Facebook.
“We will fulfill the order of [President of Ukraine] Volodymyr Zelensky in time,” he said.
According to Kravtsov, a gradual plan would become a part of the implementation of the Ukrzaliznytsia’s strategy agreed with the Cabinet of Ministers and approved by the supervisory council in June 2019. After the plan is fulfilled and approved by the supervisory board, Ukrzaliznytsia will begin making certain steps under the control of the government, he added.
“[Infrastructure Minister] Vladyslav Krykliy, [Prime Minister] Oleksiy Honcharuk back European model. The main is that infrastructure remains under state regulation, when passenger and freight carriages are carried under the market conditions,” he said.
As reported, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has instructed the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to prepare a plan on restructuring of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia by the end of 2019.
The president appointed Honcharuk and Krykliy responsible for the preparation of the plan.
PJSC Ukrzaliznytsia in the first half of 2019 repaired 45 electric trains and 18 diesel trains at their depots, while six electric trains and one diesel train were overhauled.
As a press service of the enterprise reported on Wednesday, by the end of 2019 the Ukrzaliznytsia is going to repair another 50 electric train sets and 15 diesel train sets.
As reported, Ukrzaliznytsia plans to launch a pilot project to upgrade commuter trains in Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions, asking Kyivpastrans to allocate UAH 500 million for their renewal.
Ukrzaliznytsia (Kyiv) has saved energy resources worth more than $6 million (UAH 165 million) since the beginning of 2019 thanks to the implementation of the energy and resource saving program for railway transport for 2019-2020 and the purchase of modern rolling stock.
According to the press service of the company, in particular, electricity consumption in the first quarter of 2019 was reduced by almost 30 million kWh, diesel fuel by about 4,000 tonnes, natural gas by more than 400,000 cubic meters.
“Thanks to the acquisition and commissioning of General Electric locomotives, over the five months some 1,970 tonnes of diesel fuel was saved, which reduced the cost of purchasing fuel by almost UAH 58 million. Thanks to the elimination of energy intensive train speed limits, 108 tonnes of diesel fuel worth UAH 3 million and 3,574 kWh of electricity worth almost UAH 7.2 million were saved,” Ukrzaliznytsia said.
In addition, according to the company, energy saving was also promoted by the work of traction energy laboratory wagons, which made 243 research trips.
Ukrzaliznytsia in the summer season daily transports around 141,000 passengers, which is over 20% more than this spring, the company has reported on its website.
“We are making every effort to provide passengers with the required number of seats in trains and proper service. For the period of peak summer traffic, 32 additional trains have been assigned. Thus, at present, 147 trains run daily in the country,” Ukrzaliznytsia Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov said.
At the same time, according to him, out of 2,864 cars involved in transportation, 1,304 are equipped with air conditioning systems.
“We also hope that this year the changes would be made to the budget, the state will allocate funds for the renewal of the passenger sector,” the head of Ukrzaliznytsia said.
