Latest news with #SvitlanaHrynchuk
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Losses in Ukraine's mining sector reach US$1.7 trillion since start of full-scale invasion
During the three years of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, Ukraine's mining sector has lost about US$1.7 trillion. Source: Svitlana Hrynchuk, Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, in an interview with Reuters Details: About half of Ukraine's strategically important material resources are located in the temporarily occupied territories. Hrynchuk said that a large part of coal deposits, some lithium, manganese and other mineral deposits remain in the temporarily occupied territories. She expressed hope that a joint recovery fund with the United States would significantly increase the potential of the mining industry. "Currently, our natural resources sector accounts for 4% of gross domestic product, but the potential is much greater... We sincerely hope that the agreement will draw more attention to this sector and make foreign investment more transparent and attractive," Hrynchuk said. She stressed that Ukraine is radically reforming its mining sector in an effort to attract billions of dollars in investment under an agreement with the United States on mineral extraction. The country is focused on improving access to information and data on geological exploration, reducing bureaucracy and finalising lists of critical and strategic minerals that are crucial to the economy. Background: On 1 May, Ukrainian Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko and US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent signed an agreement on minerals. On 8 May, the Ukrainian parliament voted to ratify an agreement on the creation of a joint investment fund between Ukraine and the US. On 12 May, Zelenskyy signed the ratification of the subsoil agreement with the US. Earlier, it was reported that 20,000 deposits had been explored in Ukraine, but only about 3,500 deposits were being developed. New deposits are practically not being explored, and there is an acute problem of "dormant" licences, when no work is being carried out on explored and promising sites. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has expanded the list of minerals of national and local importance. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Ukraine revamps minerals sector, eyes billions in investment from U.S. deal
Ukraine is overhauling its minerals sector, which has been pounded by three years of war, in the hope of unlocking potential and attracting billions of dollars of investment from a minerals deal with the U.S., its ecology minister said. The country has deposits of 22 of 34 minerals deemed as critical by the European Union for industries such as defense, high-tech appliances and green energy, as well as ferro alloy, precious and non-ferrous metals used in construction, and some rare earth elements. However, much of the sector is underdeveloped, weighed down by Soviet-era bureaucracy and lack of investment. After months of fraught negotiations, Kyiv and the United States agreed to a minerals deal in April that was heavily promoted by U.S. President Donald Trump. It created a fund, which became active on May 23, that will receive money from new mining licenses in Ukraine and invest in minerals projects. Ecology Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk said in an interview that Ukraine hoped the fund would significantly increase the mineral industry's potential, noting extraction was a capital-intensive and long-term task. "Currently, our natural resources sector's share of gross domestic product is 4%, but the potential is much greater," she said late on Monday, without giving projections. "We really hope the agreement will draw more attention to this sector and make foreign investment more understandable and more attractive." With the conflict still ongoing, about half of the country's mineral wealth and a fifth of its territory are now under Russian occupation. Ukraine has lost most of its coal deposits, as well as some lithium and manganese deposits and other minerals. Hrynchuk estimated that the sector had suffered losses of about 70 trillion hryvnias ($1.7 trillion) due to the occupation of Ukrainian territory and combat action along a more than 1,000 kilometer frontline. Ukraine updated its strategy for its resources sector at the end of last year and was now focusing on improving access to information and data on geological exploration, reducing bureaucracy and finalizing the lists of critical and strategic minerals crucial for the economy, she said. The work is also part of Ukraine's push to move closer to the European Union, which Kyiv hopes to join in 2030. Hrynchuk said the government was working with the European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on a multi-year project to digitize up to 80% of Soviet-era geological data. That task is about 40% complete, she said. The government was also working to review an existing 3,000 mining licenses. Hrynchuk estimated that about 10% of them could be dormant. "We are not interested in taking away assets if there is a potential for them to work," she said. "We are interested for those assets which are... valuable for the state and have not been working for 10 years or more, to make appropriate managerial decisions about them. And to launch them back into circulation." The licence review will be done this year and next, she said. Despite wartime challenges, the government continued to auction mining licenses and last year raised 2.4 billion hryvnias from auctioning 120 mining licenses. It hopes to get a similar amount into the state coffers this year and has already awarded 32 licenses, with the majority for building sector materials, including clay, sand, marble, granite, but also amber. Investors, who at present are predominantly domestic, were mostly interested in licenses for oil and gas exploration, as well as minerals such as titanium, graphite and manganese, she said. The U.S. minerals deal was agreed despite a clash between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trump during their meeting in the White House in February. Final documents to enable the joint investment fund to operate were exchanged last week, but projects will take time to materialise, Ukrainian officials said. The minerals deal, which U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent termed as a full economic partnership, hands the United States preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals accords and will help to fund Ukraine's reconstruction.
Reuters
6 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Ukraine revamps minerals sector, eyes billions in investment from US deal
KYIV, May 27 (Reuters) - Ukraine is overhauling its minerals sector, which has been pounded by three years of war, in the hope of unlocking potential and attracting billions of dollars of investment from a minerals deal with the U.S., its ecology minister said. The country has deposits of 22 of 34 minerals deemed as critical by the European Union for industries such as defence, high-tech appliances and green energy, as well as ferro alloy, precious and non-ferrous metals used in construction, and some rare earth elements. However, much of the sector is underdeveloped, weighed down by Soviet-era bureaucracy and lack of investment. After months of fraught negotiations, Kyiv and the United States agreed a minerals deal in April that was heavily promoted by U.S. President Donald Trump. It created a fund, which became active on May 23, that will receive money from new mining licences in Ukraine and invest in minerals projects. Ecology Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk told Reuters in an interview that Ukraine hoped the fund would significantly increase the mineral industry's potential, noting extraction was a capital-intensive and long-term task. "Currently, our natural resources sector's share of gross domestic product is 4%, but the potential is much greater," she said late on Monday, without giving projections. "We really hope the agreement will draw more attention to this sector and make foreign investment more understandable and more attractive." With the conflict still ongoing, about half of the country's mineral wealth and a fifth of its territory are now under Russian occupation. Ukraine has lost most of its coal deposits, as well as some lithium and manganese deposits and other minerals. Hrynchuk estimated that the sector had suffered losses of about 70 trillion hryvnias ($1.7 trillion) due to the occupation of Ukrainian territory and combat action along a more than 1,000 km (621 miles) frontline. Ukraine updated its strategy for its resources sector at the end of last year and was now focusing on improving access to information and data on geological exploration, reducing bureaucracy and finalising the lists of critical and strategic minerals crucial for the economy, she said. The work is also part of Ukraine's push to move closer to the European Union, which Kyiv hopes to join in 2030. Hrynchuk said the government was working with the European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on a multi-year project to digitise up to 80% of Soviet-era geological data. That task is about 40% complete, she said. The government was also working to review an existing 3,000 mining licenses. Hrynchuk estimated that about 10% of them could be dormant. "We are not interested in taking away assets if there is a potential for them to work," she said. "We are interested for those assets which are... valuable for the state and have not been working for 10 years or more, to make appropriate managerial decisions about them. And to launch them back into circulation." The licence review will be done this year and next, she said. Despite wartime challenges, the government continued to auction mining licenses and last year raised 2.4 billion hryvnias from auctioning 120 mining licenses. It hopes to get a similar amount into the state coffers this year and has already awarded 32 licenses, with the majority for building sector materials, including clay, sand, marble, granite, but also amber. Investors, who at present are predominantly domestic, were mostly interested in licenses for oil and gas exploration, as well as minerals such as titanium, graphite and manganese, she said. The U.S. minerals deal was agreed despite a clash between President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Trump during their meeting in the White House in February. Final documents to enable the joint investment fund to operate were exchanged last week, but projects will take time to materialise, Ukrainian officials said. The minerals deal, which U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent termed as a full economic partnership, hands the United States preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals accords and will help to fund Ukraine's reconstruction.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia attacked Chornobyl Nuclear Plant in February, damaging confinement. Can it be fully restored?
The confinement over the fourth nuclear reactor at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant has not been functioning properly as a protective shield for almost three months. On Feb. 14, on the day of the Munich Security Conference, a Russian drone hit the structure over the nuclear facility, creating a 15-meter hole and jeopardizing atomic safety in Europe. The drone exploded upon impact with the confinement and caused a fire that took about three weeks to extinguish. "We are at war. Any facility can be attacked, but it was the pinnacle of cynicism and irresponsibility on the part of the Russians," Svitlana Hrynchuk, Ukraine's environmental protection and natural resources minister, told the Kyiv Independent. The restoration of the facility, which cost nearly $2.3 billion to build, could take months, if not years. In the meantime, the risk remains, as radioactive substances, including ultra-radioactive graphite, are still confined under the now-damaged structure. Read also: Plokhy argues in Chornobyl occupation book that Russia's nuclear blackmail is 'warning for the future' The Shahed-type drone was flying too low, at an altitude of 85 meters, so air defenses could not shoot it down, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in response to the attack that damaged the Chornobyl confinement. The drone's hit damaged the confinement's outer shell and inner lining, which protected the structure from moisture and rust. Hrynchuk said it was fortunate that the drone damaged the outer part of the structure rather than directly the part of the layer over the reactor, which helped avoid a disaster. Since the attack, experts have not recorded a rise in radiation at the facility. "At the same time, due to the impact and destruction, a part of the functions for which this facility was built were lost," she said. "The facility was partially depressurized." Although the initial fire was extinguished quickly, the smoldering of the waterproof membrane inside the structure lasted another three weeks. To extinguish the smoldering, firefighters had to break through holes in the outer layer of the structure and spray water inside. According to Hrynchuk, emergency workers had to make about 200 such holes, and the total area of the fire was about 50 square meters. The structure was designed to be waterproof. This was supposed to help ensure that the shield over the reactor would last 100 years. Because of the Russian attack, it lasted only six. Read also: Chornobyl nuclear disaster One of the main functions of the confinement was to protect the world outside from radiation and reactor inside from the weather, not from drones with high-explosive warheads. Ukraine now needs to restore the shield. "Our goal is to renew it 100%," Hrynchuk said. "We must restore the facility's hermeticity, all its functions." According to the minister, Ukraine, together with foreign experts, should complete an assessment of the damage after the attack in May, and in June, a short-term plan for the restoration of the facility should be ready. The reconstruction plan will also be presented in June at a conference organized by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The first goal is to close the hole in the shield to protect everything underneath from precipitation and environmental calamities. After that, the most challenging stage — restoring full functionality of the confinement. It is too early to say exactly when the work on the structure will be completed and how much it will cost, Hrynchuk said. "For the international community and, of course, for Ukraine, it is a priority (to restore the confinement)," the minister said. "The facility is quite complex and considered a high-level risk one. So, all experts who can contribute to making this work as fast and high-quality as possible are involved." We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine works to repair Chornobyl containment structure damaged in Russian drone strike
Ukraine is working to repair damage to the containment structure at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant following a Russian drone strike in February, Environment Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk said on April 12. Speaking at the site of the decommissioned plant, Hrynchuk noted that the strike had compromised the functionality of the massive protective arch installed in 2019 to prevent radioactive leaks. The minister commented during the launch of a new 0.8-megawatt solar power station near Chornobyl ahead of two upcoming nuclear safety and energy conferences. She said that Ukraine is cooperating with international experts to assess the extent of the damage and determine the necessary steps to restore the arch's integrity. "Unfortunately, after the attack, the arch partially lost its functionality. And now, I think, already in May, we will have the results of the analysis that we are currently conducting ...," Hrynchuk said. "We are actively working on this ... We, of course, need to restore the "arch" so that there are no leaks under any circumstances because ensuring nuclear and radiation safety is the main task." She added that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, as well as scientific institutions and companies involved in the arch's original installation, are contributing to the analysis. Read also: Plokhy argues in Chornobyl occupation book that Russia's nuclear blackmail is 'warning for the future' According to plant officials, the February 14 drone attack created a hole in the containment vessel's outer layer and exploded inside. The Russian Foreign Ministry dismissed the incident as "a provocation." The structure was designed to enclose the unstable sarcophagus hastily built after the 1986 reactor explosion—the worst nuclear accident in history. Hrynchuk also emphasized the importance of renewable energy in the Chornobyl exclusion zone, saying the new solar facility would support the site's power needs. "We have been saying for many years that the exclusion zone needs to be transformed into a zone of renewal," she said. "And this territory, like no other in Ukraine, is suitable for developing renewable energy projects." Read also: These parents and children were killed by Russia after Kyiv agreed to 30-day ceasefire We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
