Energoatom accused VostGOK of short supply of uranium concentrate for 700 million hryvnia
SE "VostGOK" received from NNEGC "Energoatom" a full settlement for uranium concentrate in 2020 in the amount of 2.85 million hryvnia, but at the same time, VostGOK did not supply Energoatom with products for 700 million hryvnia. This was announced by the Acting President of NNEGC "Energoatom" Petr Kotin.
“Now we have fully paid for 800 tons (the volume of delivery in 2020 - ed.), yesterday we transferred them 50 million hryvnia at the request of the prime minister. Their debt on the concentrate is 700 million hryvnia to us, and we understand that they will not supply it, "he said.
According to Kotin, Energoatom and VostGOK have reduced the annual supply from 1,000 to 800 tons of uranium concentrate.
“Under this agreement, they have to supply us with 1,000 tons of concentrate. We pay them in advance payments - UAH 290 million a month. In September-October, we realized that they would not produce 1,000 tons, but we pay and pay, so we agreed that we would reduce the supply from 1,000 to 800 tons, ”Kotin said.
He added that Energoatom admits the possibility of VostGOK joining its structure, by the decision of the government.
“We go for this idea, we understand ... that we need to take control of them and bring the situation (to a better state - ed.). We admit this possibility, we do not deny, ”Kotin said.
VostGOK's accession to Energoatom is seen as one of the ways to resolve the debt situation at the enterprise, the Prime Minister of Ukraine Denis Shmygal confirmed.
Previously it was reported that the mines of the VostGOK State Enterprise, which were shut down in early December, will return to work on January 4. Workers of the only uranium mining enterprise in Ukraine held protests and this week blocked four highways of state importance for three days, demanding payment of wage arrears and the resumption of the mines.
At the end of November, the acting head of the Ministry of Energy Yuriy Boyko reported that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is considering the possibility of joining VostGOK to Energoatom, which should automatically remove debt issues within the framework of the functioning of a single property complex.
According to him, in conditions when the cost of production of domestic uranium concentrate significantly exceeds the world indicators, the merger of enterprises could improve the financial situation at the plant.
Energoatom is the operator of all four operating nuclear power plants in Ukraine. Operates 15 power units equipped with pressurized water reactors with a total installed electrical capacity of 13,835 GW.
VostGOK is the only in Ukraine and the largest in Europe enterprise for the extraction and processing of uranium ore. The annual demand of Ukrainian NPPs for uranium concentrate is about 2.4 thousand tons, while its internal production by SE "VostGOK" is about 1 thousand tons.