USPA Introducing Port Concession Projects to Chinese Businessmen

On 25 July the sea ports of Odessa and Chornomorsk played host to representatives of National Development and Reform Commission, People’s Republic of China, and major Chinese companies dealing with realisation of large-scale infrastructure projects around the world. Chairman of Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA) Raivis Veckagans considered with the Chinese delegation possibilities of their companies to participate in investment projects at the ports Odessa, Yuzhny, Chornomorsk, Kherson, Olvia, and Reni, as per the USPA Press Office.
The Chinese investors were presented with four concession ventures: railway ferry terminal in Chornomorsk port; state enterprise (SE) Stevedoring Company Olvia; SE Kherson Sea Trade Port, SE Yuzhny Sea Trade Port, as well as the development project for Odessa Port passenger terminal, and construction of the international motorway M14 to connect ports of Kherson, Mykolaiv, and Odessa.
Mr Veckagans noted that Chinese companies are already active participants and winners of open tenders on large infrastructure projects. In particular, China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. carries out dredging works in Yuzhny port, and from August 2018 is starting to service Chornomorsk port too. As concerns the cargo handling, here the bilateral cooperation is not confined with import of Chinese goods into Ukraine by sea. The Ukrainian ports also serve as gates for Chinese businesses to bring Ukrainian products and transit cargoes into China, to provide their enterprises in the EU with necessary raw materials.
“Our ports own a number of advantages for the Chinese business – they could be integrated into the new routes of the Silk Road to deliver freight from China to the EU and back, both by solely seaways, and with the use of road, railway, and maritime transport. The experience of Chinese companies in the fulfilment of sizable investment projects worldwide will be very helpful for the development and modernisation of Ukrainian ports. Investors will obtain good chances to more efficiently process the existing cargo flows and attract new shippers”, is confident the head of USPA.
The Chinese delegation visit framework enabled them to discuss in detail the concession tender terms for Yuzhny, Kherson, and Olvia ports, as well as feasible patterns of project funding, both as PPP and within the special economic zone in Reni, also some other formats of collaboration.
Meeting with Vice Chairman of Odessa Region Public Administration Svitlana Shatalova, the Chinese mission spoke on the possibility of investments into the projects Odessa Industrial Park and Reni SEZ.
“We are very interested in the projects concerned with Ukrainian ports Yuzhny, Kherson, and Reni. And we intend to analyse them in detail in order to decide on the format of Chinese companies’ participation in their realisation”, announced Director of International Cooperation Department of NDRC Mr Van Jianjun, “We are ready to consider various finance patterns of these ventures, including those without mandatory state guarantees. In our view, concession could be prospective and we would like to thoroughly study its conditions with our Ukrainian counterparts”, added the Chinese mission leader.
The Chinese delegation represented such major companies and financial institutions as Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Exim Bank, China Gezhouba Group International Engineering Co. Ltd., China Communications Construction Company Ltd. (International), China Road and Bridge Corporation, Сhina state construction engineering corporation, China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd., China Airport Construction Group Corporation, China Railway Construction Corporation. Their total market capitalization exceeds $600Bn.
Source: http://tbu.com.ua/news/kitaiskaia_delegatsiia_posetila_porty_odessa_i_chernomorsk.html