Ukrzaliznytsia PJSC could post a net loss of approximately UAH 1 billion by the end of 2015. This was announced by Infrastructure Minister Andriy Pyvovarsky during a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada's Transport Committee.
These figures, he said, are unaudited. The minister also noted that this was due to the appreciation of the exchange rate and the depreciation of the hryvnia, increased depreciation, and rising energy prices. Consequently, if freight tariffs are not increased in 2016, losses will increase to 6 billion hryvnias. Capital investments, however, will amount to only 37 billion hryvnias.
Tariffs were initially planned to be raised in two stages: by 30% overall, with a 15% increase scheduled for January 1 and July 1. However, Minister of Economic Development and Trade Aivaras Abromavicius stated in late January that the increase would only be 15%.
For their part, representatives of large industrial enterprises wrote a letter to Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, criticizing Ukrzaliznytsia's plan to increase fares by a third. The letter noted that a 30% increase had already taken place in 2015.
According to Pivovarsky, tariffs for transporting all cargo except coal will increase by 15% starting March 1. The Minister of Infrastructure also stated that Ukrainian tariffs are several times lower than those in neighboring countries.
SKELET-info
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