Page 50 - UKRRptAug21

9.1.10 Renewables sector news
Solar and wind energy producers are pursuing 130 legal actions totaling $66mn against Ukrenergo’s Guaranteed Buyer for non-payment of the green tariff, reports expro.com.ua. The Guaranteed Buyer says it is trying to reach a compromise on the claims. Last month, this state company said the overdue debt amounts to $630mn. The President’s office is considering a proposal to place a $500mn hryvnia ‘green bond’ to pay most of the debt.
Prime Minister Shmygal said that Ukraine will need €100bn in capital investment over the next decade to reduce emissions to 35% of 1990 levels. Ukraine’s 2030 emissions target is not considered very ambitious given the nation’s industrial contraction since 1990, as well as the loss of half of the Donbas in 2014.
9.1.11 Metallurgy & mining sector news
Of an EU list of 30 critical raw materials, 21 are in Ukraine, said Maros Sefcovic, the European Commission’s Vice President. Speaking at the signing of a co-operation agreement in Kyiv (EU-Ukraine batteries and raw materials cooperation agreement): “We’re talking about lithium, cobalt, manganese, rare earths – all of them are in Ukraine.” At present, China provides 98% of the EU’s supply of rare earth elements, a key component for magnets used in electric car batteries, smartphones and wind turbines.
“Currently, mining is carried out only on 35% of all explored deposits of industrial significance in Ukraine. The subsoil user’s path to the immediate start of mining is a complex and bureaucratic process that takes 1–2 years and involves obtaining several permits from eight bodies. After the draft law has been endorsed in the second reading by Verkhovna Rada, it will take only 4-6 months to obtain those [permits].”
According to GMK Centre, Ukrainian steelmakers will need to invest $25bn in order to meet the new low carbon standards of the EU and the US. Speaking at an international forum on: “Decarbonization of the Steel Industry: a Challenge for Ukraine.” Yuriy Ryzhenkov, CEO of Metinvest said: “Metinvest is developing a detailed roadmap to reduce CO2 emissions.” “We are very careful in working out each step that will eventually lead our production to carbon neutrality, because such a large-scale transformation should not harm the sustainability of our business.” The EU Commission announced an aggressive plan to cut carbon emissions, including a “carbon border tax” on imports of ‘dirty steel.’
Long term investment in Ukraine’s mining sector could generate $400bn over the next decade, said the Prime Minister, Shmygal. Goals should be: double exports, cut imports by two thirds, and expand mineral processing. He said, Ukraine should aim to be a full partner of the EU in the extraction and processing of critical raw materials, rather than a “raw material donor.”
Driven by Chinese demand, world iron ore prices have reached 15 year highs, and Ukraine responded by increasing its iron ore production by 8% to 10.8mn tons, during the first half of this year, compared to the same January-June period last year, reports Ukrmetalurgprom, the metals industry association. Similarly, Ukraine’s steel production rose by 7.5%, to 10.9mn tons.
50 UKRAINE Country Report August 2021 www.intellinews.com