Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

Government has authorized pharmacy sales at gas stations

The Cabinet of Ministers has authorized the sale of over-the-counter drugs at gas stations, provided that the appropriate license is obtained, according to Health Minister Viktor Lyashko.
“We have authorized the sale of over-the-counter drugs at gas stations, provided that the appropriate license is obtained. This applies to situations where there are no pharmacies nearby: in villages, in frontline communities, or late at night outside of large cities. We are only talking about safe, over-the-counter drugs that people use on their own. In wartime, this is especially important, as gas station chains often remain operational even during power outages. The requirements for sales at gas stations ensure the quality and safety of medicines. This will help lower prices and make medicines more affordable,” he wrote on Facebook.
According to him, the government has also made a number of decisions, in particular, pharmacies in state and municipal hospitals are required to sell only the three lowest-priced drugs from the National Catalog among drugs with the same composition and effect.
In addition, specialists with a broader range of qualifications, as defined by law, can now be employed in pharmacies and pharmacy outlets.
“In rural areas and frontline communities, medicines can be dispensed in pharmacies (without manufacturing) by specialists with at least a junior bachelor’s degree in nursing and a certificate in pharmacy (retail sale of medicines). This allows pharmacies to build more effective teams, especially in communities with staff shortages, while ensuring the quality and safety of pharmaceutical care for patients,” Lyashko wrote.
In addition, the government has regulated the rules for providing marketing services in the pharmaceutical sector.
“This refers to transparent tools for promoting drugs at points of sale: providing information, placing materials, or participating in loyalty programs. The launch of the National Price Catalog makes it impossible to use marketing as a tool for covertly increasing the cost of drugs—the declared prices are fixed, and promotion becomes a mechanism for informing and increasing accessibility for patients,” the minister noted.

 

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Cabinet of Ministers requests dismissal of certain members of supervisory boards of OGTSU, EKU, Market Operator, Centrenergo, and URS

The Cabinet of Ministers published Resolution No. 1596 of December 3, “Issues of Management of Certain Business Entities,” which, as previously reported by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, initiated the immediate termination of the powers of a significant part of the supervisory boards of key state-owned energy companies.

According to the document, the government expects the Ministry of Energy and the State Property Fund to terminate the powers of the members of the supervisory board of LLC “Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine” (OGTSU) Vitaliy Zubriy and Ruslan Strilets, JSC “Energy Company of Ukraine” – Oksana Osmachko and Oleksandr Muzhel, and JSC “Market Operator” Olena Kovalchuk and Andriy Stepanenko.

This list also includes three members of the supervisory board of PJSC Centrenergo, Volodymyr Velychko, Andriy Hota, and Serhiy Simonov, as well as five members of the supervisory board of JSC Ukrainian Distribution Networks, Yevhen Litvinov, Oleg Kantsurov, Andriy Kostrytsya, Svitlana Bilko, and Andriy Pochtaiev.

In addition, the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture has been instructed to prepare proposals for convening an extraordinary general meeting of Ukrainian Energy Machines JSC with the aim of terminating the powers of independent member of the supervisory board Andriy Tkachenko.

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Cabinet of Ministers has included Korosten-Podilsky Industrial Park in Zhytomyr Region in register

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has included the Korosten-Podilsky project, with a total area of 78.0236 hectares in the city of Korosten, in the Register of Industrial Parks. The project was initiated by the city council, according to the Ministry of Economy. According to the concept, the park will house woodworking, textile, metal products, and machine-building enterprises, as well as other non-metallic mineral products, machinery and equipment, concrete products, bricks, construction mixtures, and the development of activities in the field of information and electronic communications.

The creation of the park is expected to provide 2,300–4,000 new jobs in the manufacturing industry. To attract investment, the Korosten City Council adopted a Comprehensive Community Economic Development Program for 2025–2027. The program provides for the promotion of the functioning and development of industrial parks in the amount of UAH 150 million and the development of design and estimate documentation for the park’s engineering and transport infrastructure in the amount of UAH 2.5 million.

The term for the creation of the park is 30 years. The decision was adopted on the evening of November 13. Taking this decision into account, there are 109 industrial parks in the Register.

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Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has extended ban on export of unprocessed timber

The moratorium on the export of unprocessed timber from Ukraine, which was introduced on November 1, 2015, for 10 years, has been temporarily extended by a decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine until the end of the year in the form of a zero export quota.

“At the request of businesses, the government has made an important decision to temporarily ban the export of unprocessed timber. This is a necessary step to take care of people in winter, preserve the work of our enterprises, and reduce the burden on the environment,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote on Friday on Telegram following her trip to the Rivne region.

She noted that the volume of logging in Ukraine has significantly decreased during the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation. “Enterprises that could be operating are idle or working at minimum capacity due to a lack of wood. The army needs wood for its own needs. Life in rural communities, where firewood is a key resource for heating in winter, depends on the availability of wood,” the head of government wrote.

In addition, according to Svyrydenko, the war has caused significant damage to the environment, as part of the forests are temporarily occupied or damaged by hostilities. “Therefore, timber exports will create an additional burden on the environment,” the prime minister noted.

“The decision provides for export licensing – a zero quota until the end of the year. We continue to work on further steps to systematically address the timber shortage,” Svyrydenko said.

The head of the State Forest Resources Agency of Ukraine, Viktor Smal, previously told the agency that according to the law adopted in 2015, the moratorium on the export of unprocessed timber of all tree species, except pine (a 10-year moratorium was introduced for pine on January 1, 2017), will end on November 1, 2025.

Smal clarified that the extension of the moratorium for the duration of martial law and for another 10 years after it is provided for in the draft law on the timber market, which is currently being prepared for its first reading.
“In my opinion, 10 years is definitely enough to recover from all these shocks in terms of production and investment,” said the head of the State Forestry Agency.

He believes that the moratorium has been beneficial because a large number of production facilities have expanded and opened in Ukraine. “If we look at the structure of our exports, we will see that the depth of our wood processing leaves much to be desired. We should try to make not boards, not beams, not pallets, but cribs, kitchen chairs, tables, and export them,” Smal added.

As reported, in January-August 2025, Ukraine exported $1,131.3 million worth of wood and wood products, which is 15.5% more than in January-August 2024. However, during the same period, wood and wood products worth $160.5 million were imported, which is 8.8% more than in January-August 2024.

During this period, wood and other fibrous cellulose materials worth $186.2 million were exported (19.1% more than in January-August 2024), and $594.3 million worth were imported (1.7% less than in January-August 2024).

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Cabinet of Ministers has allowed ARMA to purchase military bonds worth UAH 1 bln, $32 mln, and EUR 4 mln

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the purchase by the National Agency for Finding, Tracing and Managing Assets (ARMA) of domestic government bonds “Military Bonds” worth UAH 1 billion, $32 million, and EUR 4 million.

The relevant order No. 1124-r of October 10 was published on the Government portal on Monday.

The purchase will be made using funds deposited in the agency’s accounts in national and foreign currency. As noted in the document, these are assets obtained as a result of corruption and other crimes.

According to the National Bank, the total portfolio of military bonds owned by individuals and legal entities as of October 1, 2025, amounted to UAH 169.8 billion.

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Cabinet simplifies access to sports prostheses for veterans

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has allowed veterans to receive sports prostheses without additional certificates for participation in competitions, training, or personal rehabilitation, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced.

“Treatment for Ukrainian civilians released from Russian captivity. From now on, treatment at a sanatorium can be accompanied by one person — a family member or companion,” Svyrydenko wrote on Telegram following Wednesday’s government meeting.

In addition, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted a decision at the meeting that should simplify the process of obtaining a sports prosthesis.

“It is no longer necessary to be a member of a sports organization or to participate in competitions included in state or regional calendars. From now on, veterans will be able to obtain a sports prosthesis without additional certificates, both for participation in competitions and for training or personal rehabilitation,” the prime minister added.

 

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