Director General Odeskabel PJSC, Honorary Citizen of Odesa Oblast Dmitry Iorgachev became a laureate of the National Influence Rating "Elite of Ukraine-2021".
He started working at the plant as a deputy head of the workshop in 1986 and proved himself to be a successful leader, after 12 years he was elected general director of the enterprise. Under the leadership of Dmitry Iorgachev, a new era was born in the development of the Odessa Cable Plant: the enterprise became innovative and occupies a leading position in Ukraine and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe in terms of the quality of the cables produced.
Agency EliteExpert met with Dmitry Vasilyevich to talk about the past, present and future of the plant, as well as the challenges that the cable industry of Ukraine is facing now, in the context of the pandemic.
— You lead an enterprise that for decades has been one of the most important in the economy of the region and the entire country. Tell me, is it difficult to keep such a high mark, what problems do you have to face, what tasks do you have to solve?
— Yes, indeed, the Odessa cable plant is now one of the leaders in cable production in South-Eastern Europe. If he talks about whether it is easy or not, then I will say directly - it is difficult, and for several reasons at once.
First, it is now possible to say without a doubt that the cable production industry in Ukraine is fully preserved, and "Odeskabel" is a company with tremendous experience and capabilities. We produce everything: power cables up to 35 kilovolts — and not every manufacturer can boast of this — and telecommunication cables, including high-end cables, all types of fiber-optic cables, and so on. In general, our plant and other capacities existing in Ukraine are able to fully meet the needs of Ukrainian consumers in cable production of any type, size and name.
But there is a big problem. It consists in the fact that for two years the country has been in a rather difficult economic situation connected with the coronavirus pandemic. And despite the fact that similar complications are now observed all over the world, there are significant differences. In developed countries, the state actively supports national manufacturers, but in Ukraine, unfortunately, this is not yet the case. And of course, the producers to whom our own country provides assistance have an advantage over us. It is easier for them than for us, they are more competitive.
A few years ago, manufacturers began to feel the pressure of imports on our industry. That is, cables from China, Belarus, Turkey began to be brought to Ukraine... We started to lose in pricing - our prices are more expensive. However, why does this happen? Because Chinese manufacturers have state support (including subsidized), the entire cable industry in Belarus is located in free economic zones with preferential taxation. Not only that, Belarus, in addition to support, also protects — it gives preference to the national producer, even at the level of 10-15%. By the way, last year, the EU paid attention to dumping by Chinese cable manufacturers and, as a result of the investigation, on November 18.11.2021, 44, imposed an import duty of up to XNUMX%.
Having analyzed the situation with increasing imports, we presented an initiative to the Ministry of Economy, stated the need for an investigation into the import of cable products to protect the national producer. Last July, the Ministry of Economy launched this process with the involvement of all interested parties. After 9 months, in April of this year, the interdepartmental commission on foreign economic trade, based on the results of the investigation, decided to support national manufacturers and for 3 years to impose a duty of 23,5% on the import of cable.
Eight months have passed since the decision was made by the Interdepartmental Commission on Foreign Economic Trade, and the protective measures provided for by this decision have not yet come into force. It is obvious that the importers exert pressure not only in economic terms, but also by all means and untruths try to intervene in the legislative process.
— The conclusion immediately arises about someone's lobbyism or banal corruption...
— I am not a jurist or a lawyer, so I cannot use such terms. I can only say that today the cable business lacks state support. Every large enterprise in this business, despite the difficulties, invests in new equipment, in new technologies, and buys new materials. Of course, it is possible now for 2-3 years not to invest in anything at all, to get a good profit, but then we will simply lose the market - this industry is developing so dynamically. Today, cable manufacturers of Ukraine are fully competitive, ready and able to provide consumers in various industries with cables.
The national producer and importer must be on equal competitive terms. And these few years can be spent with benefit for the country - please, exclude the possibility of building networks on anything, monitor compliance with existing standards, prevent consumer deception - when one thing is on the wrapper, and the other is in the middle, and then the topic of duties will go away by itself.
Without the support of the national producer, we can turn into a state without an economy, without industry, and without those industries that have not only survived in the country, no matter what, but also successfully withstand competition on the world market.
— How does the Odeskabel plant still manage to produce high-quality products in such difficult conditions, despite these permanent economic and political crises in the country?
— In order to produce a good product, three things are necessary, this is an axiom: firstly, good equipment (and we only have the best manufacturers - Austria, France, Germany - we do not buy cheap, questionable quality); secondly, good raw materials and materials. Again, we buy the best - where the whole world buys, in the USA, in Japan, in Germany... The third factor, the most important, is, of course, people, our specialists. Thank God, the factory still has professionals with sufficient qualifications to produce a classy cable.
And we always say: our cable cannot be cheap, because we work on high-class equipment, we use raw materials and materials from leading manufacturers. And there are difficulties. For example, in June we paid 2 million 600 thousand hryvnias for electricity. In November - already 7 million 100 thousand. That is, the cost of production at the plant increased only due to the increase in electricity.
But no matter what, we persist and continue to be a successful factory with high-quality cable products. We are appreciated in Europe - in 2014, the plant received an award from the hands of the chairman of the European Union for winning the quality competition among enterprises of Central and Eastern Europe.
— Can you name one of your partners to whom you have been supplying cable for many years?
— These include Ukrzaliznytsia, Energoatom, and many telecommunication operators... About 30% of our production is exported — 19 countries around the world buy our products. The order of nine of them is the states of Europe, then Africa, Asia.
— You talked about people... And how many employees are there today in your production? Tell me more about the level of payment, about social packages, if there are any, about whether such work is harmful?
— 946 people work at the enterprise, and our production is absolutely environmentally friendly. We are certified in three quality standards for both environmental safety and technical safety.
As for the social package, we have an agreement with the trade union committee, which provides for various benefits.
The most favorable conditions for the work of the plant personnel have been created due to mandatory compliance with the requirements of the legislation and additional social guarantees and benefits, as well as the system of occupational health and safety. Therefore, I believe that the set of services that the plant provides today is decent enough for a person to be interested in working at our enterprise.
As for the salary, on average it is 19–20 thousand hryvnias. We understand that this is not enough, and therefore we try to do everything to increase it.
— Surely you are facing the problem of a lack of new specialists... Where do you get professional staff in the absence of quality education in the country?
— Unfortunately, only Kharkiv Polytechnic University supplies us with young employees - the only university in the country that trains specialists for the cable industry. And anyway, you have to retrain people on the spot. And in an hour and a half, thanks to our own efforts, we get really good specialists who will replace our old experienced staff in the future.
- You are a well-to-do person, you have devoted many years to this industry and made a significant personal contribution to the country's economy, now you can probably afford to live anywhere in the world and do everything your heart desires. What keeps you at the factory: responsibility to people, debt or something else?
— I have been the head of Odeskabele since 1986, and I am a shareholder since December 1998. During these 35 years, I became a part of this team, we created a powerful asset from people, from scientific and technical ideas that were laid, including me. So much work has been put into the enterprise that I can't let everything take over and fall apart. Of course, the time will come when I will have to leave, but I have someone to hand things over to. My son works as a first deputy at the enterprise - he is a technical director. I hope he will continue my work.
- Have you ever thought about withdrawing all your assets from Ukraine, investing in production in another country, with transparent laws, with civilized conditions for business, and working there calmly - without problems and without nerves?
— To say that I did not think about it would be untrue. Today we have a joint venture in Belarus, there is a venture in Moldova, the Czech Republic, and Romania. We use all opportunities to be participants in the European process.
But the best thing I can do is work here. Therefore, I make maximum efforts and investments in my country, in Ukraine: I understand it, I know it. In a foreign country, you will still remain a foreigner, a visitor, alien to this society. I believe that today it is necessary to fight for one's own country and one's own market.
— The International Expert Club, which I head, presented the second national ranking of influence "Elite of Ukraine". The global goal of this rating is to help the formation of a qualitatively new elite in Ukraine with a "plus" sign: with high moral values, a level of intelligence and responsibility for one's country. And hSo you invest in this concept and did it take place — the business elite, the political elite — in our country?
— Professionally, I can speak and answer only for what I know well - in particular, about business, about cable production.
If we are talking about the business elite, then, in my opinion, it includes professionals who are engaged in their favorite business, while clearly working within the framework of the law. If you belong to the elite, you can't look for loopholes, ways to circumvent the legislation, somehow it sucks. Whether it concerns the payment of taxes, the payment of salaries to employees or social guarantees, one must try to work within the framework of the law. In addition, due to their capabilities, they help to adopt the necessary laws for the good of the country - this is the elite.
— New Year and Christmas holidays are approaching. How do you personally prepare for the "Odeskabel" holidays?
— The plant is finishing well, the production volume has increased, there is profit.
And personally for me and my family, the New Year is one of the most important and anticipated holidays. For me, this is the time to sum up the next results and, of course, make new plans for the future!
Interviewed by Elena Ovchinnikova
Photo: Sergey Lyashonok
