After the invasion of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine, the sea ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk, Yuzhny and Mykolaiv were blocked, which led to the impossibility of exporting Ukrainian grain and the food crisis that is brewing in the world.
We discussed these and other issues with our guest, Serhiy Bilyuk, who has extensive experience in the maritime and port industries.
Blocked ports of Ukraine
— Today, Ukrainian seaports are blocked, and the issue of grain export from the country is critical, according to the government and international experts. The only ports currently operating are Ishmael and Reni on the Danube. At one time, you were the deputy chief of the Illichiv sea trade port, tell us what the situation with logistics is today and how critical everything is?
— Ukraine produces a lot of grain, and is one of the largest exporters in the world. Today, foreign countries and specific businessmen in our country are more interested in buying our grain than Ukraine itself. But for us right now, the first priority is to end the war.
As for our ports, in my opinion, the state has not sufficiently developed especially the river ports on the Danube, in Izmail and the Rhine. There is practically no private investor in them, no logistics chain for the delivery of goods has been built, and there is not even a railway branch in Rennes.
In this regard, there is now a collapse in the ports and huge queues due to the large influx of trucks from the elevators of Odesa, Yuzhny, Mykolaiv and other regions of Ukraine.
Unfortunately, all the governments and presidents of our country for 30 years have not managed to develop such important ports on the Danube.
The problem did not start today, and not because of the war. Back in 1998, the governments of Moldova and Ukraine signed an agreement on the transfer to Ukraine of the section of the Odesa-Reni road and part of the adjacent territory near the Moldovan village of Palanka, in exchange for which Moldova received 800 meters of the Ukrainian coast of the Danube - the territory of the former Reni district, where it built a modern port and became a maritime state.
It was a good-neighborly gesture on the part of our government, but no one calculated the risks and losses of Ukraine.
Subsequently, Moldova refused to fulfill its obligations regarding the transfer of the territory near Palanka to our state, and currently the section of the Odesa-Reni road is considered the property of Ukraine on the territory of Moldova.
In addition, and more importantly, Moldova, having received the territory of the port of Giurgiulesti, became a maritime state. And today this port handles both river and sea vessels and has the status of a free economic zone until 2030, which was a big blow for our Rhenia port. Trade fell, investors showed no interest in it, and the state was engaged in other matters.
Therefore, today's problems with the export of grain and other goods have a long history and specific authors.
— Recently, negotiations took place in Turkey about the possible unblocking of the Odesa and Black Sea ports for the export of grain, what is your opinion on this issue?
— In my deep conviction, this possible unblocking of ports will not help Ukraine win the war. We should be concerned, first of all, about our country, our people and our victory. For example, we will unblock the ports, they will export our grain, and what's next - they will continue to bombard our cities.
For us, the only and primary task is the end of the war and the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.
I understand why Turkey is so interested in this issue, they think about themselves and the rising prices in their country. Grain is not only bread and pasta, it is eggs, meat, etc. Besides, Turkey is a big consumer of our vegetable oil, and of course their leadership is worried about their state and their political future, not about Ukraine. We need to stop the war and think about our people.
Business operations during the war
— The war has been going on for the fourth month, how has your life and work changed during this period?
— I am a manufacturer in my field of activity, and our enterprises critically depend on the operation of ports. After the start of the war, unfortunately, out of 100 of our employees, 30 resigned, some went to the Armed Forces, some left.
We are trying to retool our factories in order to save jobs and survive, we are looking for new ways to supply and sell products. In this difficult time, when you don't know what will happen tomorrow, you need to adapt to the realities and work.
Fortunately, our businesses did not stand still for a single day, and I am grateful to my team for their understanding and solidarity, because in this difficult time it is very important to support each other and persevere.
— The government of Ukraine has announced assistance and benefits for entrepreneurs and businesses since the beginning of the war. Were your enterprises able to receive state support?
— Since the beginning of the war, some enterprises were allowed to switch to a new form of VAT taxation, but the income tax remained, some were only allowed to postpone payments.
I perfectly understand that taxes must be paid under any conditions, if there is an opportunity to work. But the situation that we, in particular, faced, is incomprehensible to me.
Two years ago, from April 2020, XNUMX, the government introduced a license for fuel and lubricant storage containers, which did not exist before. And we encountered problems with its registration in due time, which led to fines for our company. In addition, this license must be done every year. We hoped that because of the war, it would be canceled or suspended, but no, this year it had to be drawn up again.
After all, the problem is that, due to the shortage of fuel this spring and the rise in prices, many enterprises and farmers were unable to purchase the necessary volumes of gasoline and diesel in bulk. And we have to stand in lines at gas stations, waste time, but it doesn't help that we need 20 liters per car, when I need 20 tons of fuel per month.
In my opinion, this is a big mistake of the government, which left this license during the war, which created a huge number of problems for businesses and farmers.
In addition to this problem, there are others. For example, we also produce fuel pellets, briquettes and pellets for heating private houses and communal facilities, since half of our region is not gasified, and gas prices are very high.
Last year, we decided to expand production and take advantage of the presidential 5, 7, 9 lending program that the government was promoting a lot. They submitted a package of documents to Privat Bank, with the expectation of obtaining a loan at 7%, for the purchase of German equipment for the production of briquettes, they even found suppliers and made an agreement. But the bank considered our application for a month, and in the end we were refused, indicating in the answer that this lending program does not apply to equipment for the production of this type of fuel.
That is, our government, on the one hand, tells us that we are fighting gas dependence, we are switching to alternative fuels and renewable energy, but in fact it does not help to solve this problem.
I was sure that we would get this credit, it would bring new jobs and taxes. And there is enough raw material for the production of pellets and briquettes in our country. So how do you fight gas addiction? Give normal loans to us for the production of this fuel, to others for the purchase of boilers, for their production - but no, just talk.
In addition, we paid for all 30 years of independence and are now paying for gas to the country that went to war against us. When we could have developed our production of solid fuel a long time ago, and be truly independent in this important matter. We are an agrarian country, there is enough raw material for the production of pellets, which prevents the authorities from helping us and solving once and for all the problem with gas and energy independence.
For example, all Ukrainian producers of sunflower oil process waste into fuel pellets and send them to Poland by wagons, while we continue to buy gas directly from the Russian Federation or through schemes, but the same gas in Europe.
I would like to mention one more problem that our communities have faced. I was a deputy of the Black Sea City Council for two terms, and now I am a deputy of the Bilyaiv OTG, and I am well acquainted with the problems of heating utilities in communities.
Most schools, kindergartens and hospitals in our region are heated with solid fuel. All purchases go through the Prozoro system, and the problem is that the average cost of preparing a package of documents for participation in such tenders is about UAH 30-40 thousand, and the amounts of purchases in communities are not large - up to UAH 500 thousand. Accordingly, the entrepreneur must spend a lot of money on a package of documents for "Prozoro" and not the fact that he will win the tender. Of course, if the amount of purchases was UAH 10-20 million, it is possible to participate, but the communities do not have such funds and there is no need for such volumes of solid fuel. As a result, OTG often cannot purchase fuel on time.
Last year, we faced exactly this problem in Bilyaivka, entrepreneurs refused to participate in the auctions, as the amounts of solid fuel purchases varied from 100 to 500 thousand UAH., but people did not want to lose 30-40 thousand on documents, purchases were interrupted, and no one the government does not notice this. And I don't understand why community leaders don't turn to the relevant ministries, to their people's deputies, to the Association of Cities - for OTG to cancel these fees in "Prozoro" and give them the opportunity to purchase fuel directly, this would solve many problems for communities.
Army help
— Today, the issue of humanitarian aid is very important for the country and for the Armed Forces. Tell us about your experience?
— I often visit Mykolaiv, my friends serve there. I try to help them as much as I can - food, uniforms, personal hygiene products. We also help our fellow party friends in the Odesa region.
Now it is extremely important to support our fighters as much as possible, since the war is for Ukraine and our future. That is why we are looking for helmets, bulletproof vests, everything you need, both in our country and abroad. I try to bring them something every week.
Deputy work and politics
— You are a deputy of the Bilyaiv City Council. How are sessions conducted in wartime and what are the main issues currently being resolved by deputies?
— My path as a deputy began in the Black Sea City Council, where I worked for two convocations and was the deputy mayor, now I am a deputy in the Bilyaiv OTG. Accordingly, there is something to compare with the approaches to work, the formation of the budget and the expenditure part, and the work of councils in general.
In Bilyaivka, the mayor has been in office for 22 years, which, in my opinion, leads to stagnation of power, lack of development and lack of initiative.
In addition, a lot of communal enterprises have been created in the community, which to a greater extent are unprofitable, and this is an additional burden on the budget. But instead of finding solutions for their effective work, or closing them down because they are unnecessary, they do something incomprehensible.
But I understand the head of the community - all the employees of communal enterprises, these are not only his voters, but also his agitators for budget funds, and about 300 people work in the city's KP.
In addition, since the beginning of the war, I have been interested in the position of OPZZ deputies in our council regarding the war and everything that is happening. I demanded to convene a session so that they would speak out and indicate their position in order to prevent what happened in Melitopol and Berdyansk. So that our voters and we understand with whom we should work or not work further. Because, in my opinion, Russia was counting on the OPZZ deputies to welcome them here with flowers, which we cannot allow.
There were no statements for more than a month, until the NSDC completely banned their party. We have already held two sessions, and only at the third, in early April, they announced the dissolution of the OPZZH faction in the community.
Another important issue that I initiated in the community concerns the renaming of streets. Someone said that this is PR, but in my opinion, we cannot walk down Moskovskaya Street while our soldiers are dying at the front. And today many communities of the region have followed our example and are renaming streets after their OTG.
— You are the head of the branch of the "Batkivshchyna" party in the Odesa district of the region, what is the party doing today?
— Our party structure also underwent changes after the local elections. Since we rely entirely on the administrative and territorial system of the country, accordingly, after the creation of new communities and districts, the party was reformed.
I was elected the head of "Batkivshchyna" of Odesa district last year, and we have just started our work. But in most communities of the district we have factions. Unfortunately, the party is not represented in the Odesa and Black Sea city councils, but we will fix that.
I am impressed by the new head of "Batkivshchyna" in Odesa, Mykhailo Pozhivanov, he is an experienced and knowledgeable person, and I am sure that we will turn the situation around and be well represented in the Odesa City Council.
There are many young deputies in our team in the Odesa district, some of whom have joined the Armed Forces and territorial defense since the beginning of the war. Also, our region received a large number of immigrants from Mykolaiv, Kherson and other regions. People need to be accommodated, help with food, things, register with social services and much more - this is what our deputies and party activists in the oblast's communities are doing today. Everyone is working - for our victory!
- How did the war change you? Have any things become more important or lost priority for you?
— The war did not change me personally, as I was, I remain a fighter for our country and its European development. The people around us have changed, if earlier we discussed, tried to convince each other of some things - what is the "Russian measure", who is Russia, someone had doubts, now these people have changed radically.
For example, for a long time, I demanded changes to the work regulations of the Bilyaiv City Council, regarding the presence of the coat of arms and the flag of Ukraine in the meeting hall, and that the national anthem be played before the start of the session. The decision was finally made, but with great effort, and it was only a year and a half ago. Today it is remembered with completely different emotions.
I, like all Ukrainians, believe in our victory and do everything possible to bring it closer. But I also want and hope that the war will change the attitude towards corruption in our country, because in 30 years of independence, nothing has changed, and maybe it has worsened. And this is another front of the struggle for our state and our future!
