Page 60 - UKRRptAug20

9.0​ Industry & Sectors 9.1 ​Sector news
9.1.1​ Oil & gas sector news
On July 9, Denmark’s Energy Agency approved that Gazprom’s request to complete the last 120 km of the pipeline using Russia’s anchor-stabilized pipelaying ship​. The agency says that in that section of the Baltic there are no records of water burials of chemical weapons that could be disturbed by anchors. An additional 30 kilometers of pipeline in German waters remains to be built. According to The Wall Street Journal, a US Senate bill calls for sanctions against companies that provide certification, port facilities, tethering services or insurance to the project. The US House is discussing a similar measure.
Due to the opening this year of Turkish Stream, a Russian gas line bypassing Ukraine, the volume of Russian gas transiting Ukraine fell by 45% ​during the first half of this year, compared to January-June of 2019. If Russia opens a duplicate pipe next year, Ukraine will lose another 15bn cubic meters of transit gas, says Sergiy Makogon, head of the state-owned GTS Operator of Ukraine. Under the ‘pump or pay’ contract signed last December with Russia, Gazprom pays for moving 65bcm across Ukraine this year. During the first half of this year, Gazprom has shipped only 77% of the contracted amount.
9.1.2 ​Automotive sector news
New car sales in June jumped 24% over May, to 7,306 – 12% over June 2019​, reports Ukravtoprom. Comments Alfa-Bank Ukraine: “This supports our view that consumer demand has not been damaged by Covid dramatically.”
The monthly import of 10,000 lightly damaged cars from the US and EU for repair and use in Ukraine. Columb, a major vehicle broker​, says repairs of these ‘salvaged cars’ generally cost $2,500 to 3,000. At this volume, salvaged cars would account for almost half of the 139,400 used cars imported into Ukraine in the first half of this year. According to Columb Trade co-founder Volodymyr Kovel, proposed Interior Ministry rule changes on documentation would add $3,000 to the cost of each car.
9.1.3​ Transport sector news
● Planes
Airplanes in Ukrainian air space were up 42%in June over May, ​but still down 87% from June of last year. Domestic flights in June were down 54% y/y, international flights were down 89.5%, and transit flights were down 91%, reports UkrSATSE, the government air traffic control agency.
By the end of this year, Ukraine’s air travel will reach half the level of 2019, Infrastructure Minister Vladyslav Krykliy writes in NV.
60​ UKRAINE Country Report​ August 2020
​ ​www.intellinews.com