Page 73 - UKRRptOct20

9.2 ​Major corporate news 9.2.1​ Oil & gas corporate news
Naftogaz​ of Ukraine reported a 21% y/y decline in total revenue to UAH71.9bn in 1H20, ​according to its interim report published on September 23. The biggest revenue decline happened in the company’s Gas E&P segment (48% less y/y to UAH23.1bn) and a newly presented segment called Commerce (UAH34.1bn, halving y/y). Its EBITDA segment turned negative in 1H20 at UAH1.8bn (vs. positive UAH28.8bn a year before). The company attributes its weak P&L to low gas and oil prices and declined demand for these resources. Meanwhile, the key contributors to the company’s negative EBITDA in 1H20 were increased provisions for doubtful receivables (UAH9.1bn) and the negative result of its subsidiary Ukrnafta (UAH2.3bn loss). The company’s bottom line was negative UAH11.5bn in 1H20 (vs. positive UAH24.7bn a year ago).​ ​Naftogaz generated UAH11.8bn of cash from operations before working capital adjustments (less 62% y/y) and UAH15.6bn of net operating cash flow (down 68% y/y). The company halved its CapEx y/y to UAH7.8bn but boosted its dividend payout 10x y/y to UAH39.6bn in 1H20. As a result, its cash balance decreased 31% YTD to UAH53.4bn as of end-June 2020. Its net debt amounted to UAH14.4bn and the ratio of net debt to LTM EBITDA was 0.42x as of end-June 2020. Naftogaz also reported that it intends to demand from the government compensation for the provision of PSO services for an estimated amount of UAH32.2bn. The company expects to receive such compensation by the end of this year, while it did not include respective receivables in its balance sheet.
Ukraine's state-run pipeline operator Ukrtransnafta has been granted permission to create a licensed customs warehouse that could be used to provide oil storage services​, Ukrtransnafta CEO Mykola Havrylenko was quoted as saying by Interfax Ukraine on September 21. According to Havrylenko, the warehouse could be built next to the linear part of the Kremenchuk-Lysychansk oil pipeline, where there is a technical possibility to store about 400,000 tonnes of crude oil, or, alternatively, at the Pivdenny Sea Oil Terminal in the Black Sea Odesa region.
9.2.2 ​Automotive corporate news
9.2.3​ Transport corporate news
Zaporizhia Automobile Building Plant, or ZAZ, will assemble Renault Arkana coupe-crossovers from vehicle kits supplied from Renault’s AvtoVAZ plant in Samara​, Russia. Designed for the rugged roads of the former Soviet Union, the Arkana has a clearance of 205 mm. The suggested retail price is $16,710. With assembly expected to start this fall, production resumes at a plant that previously produced cars for Chery, Daewoo, GM, and Opel. Last month, Ukraine’s car production fell to 38, all at the Eurocar plant in Uzhgorod, reports Ukravtoprom.
Glencore, the agricultural commodities giant, has bought Everi, one of Ukraine’s largest vegetable oil export terminals. ​Built a decade ago in Mykolaiv, Everi was expanded in 2018 to have tanks capable of holding 160,000 tons and a pumping capacity of 1.5mn tons of oil into seagoing ships
73​ UKRAINE Country Report​ October 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com