Ukraine did not manage to accumulate enough coal for the winter. Moreover, it is also illegally exported abroad.
The last warm days are coming to an end, cold weather is on the way. So it's time to see how the authorities, namely the Minister of Energy Herman Galushchenko and his deputy Oleksandr Heilo, prepared the domestic energy industry for the difficult realities of the second winter of war. And things are disappointing here - experts predict that the coal shortage for the winter will amount to at least 1.5 million tons .
Where did this deficit come from? First, due to the constant decline in coal production from state mines.
And secondly, due to the fact that during Galushchenko's tenure, coal was sold abroad, and even at low prices. In addition to the schemes that the investigative journalist Yuriy Nikolov wrote
Thus, a source in the State Bureau of Investigation reported that this department is now seriously investigating schemes for selling coal from state mines abroad. In particular, the SBI started an investigation into the fact of the commission of a crime by officials of the Ministry of Energy, State Enterprise "Ukrvugilya", the state enterprise "Lvivvugilya" and its separate unit "Uglezbut". Which, contrary to the ban on the export of coal (order of the Ministry of Energy dated 10.05.2022 "On some issues of export"), secretly exported it abroad. And at the same time, they still sold at low prices.
As the SBI found out, in May 2022, the state-owned enterprise "Ukrvugilya" bought 3,147 tons of coal from "Lvivvugilya" and "Uglezbutu" in the amount of almost UAH 13.5 million. This coal was then sold through the Czech company KTK International s . r . o . to Poland for... UAH 11.3 million (EUR 367.2 thousand).
That is, the difference between the cost of the coal that was purchased from "Lvivvugil" and "Uglezbutu" and the received profit for export is minus UAH 2.087 million.
In the contracts of SE "Ukrvugilya" and KTK International s . r . o . the selling price of one ton of coal ranged from UAH 3,221 to UAH 4,164. Despite the fact that at the same time at PROZORRO and other open sites, the price of selling similar brands of coal to Ukrainian private firms was at least twice as expensive.
"What kind of sales are these, for which the purchase costs more than the sale? This is nothing more than the old tricks of coal schemers" - the representative of the SBI commented on these data in an informal conversation.
He added that, at the same time, SE "Lvivvugillia" "forgot" to issue tax invoices for value added (VAT). And as a result, SE "Ukrvugilya" did not receive his compensation.
The most interesting thing, according to him, is that this winter, at the peak of difficulties in the domestic energy sector, officials are planning to import into Ukraine... this is coal from Poland. In order to cover the deficit in warehouses and more or less pass the heating period.
And this is just one fact of machinations of domestic "coal kings". At the same time, one has to try very, very hard to believe that the Minister of Energy Galushchenko knows nothing about the continuation of the operation of schemes with state coal. After all, his deputy, Oleksandr Khaylo, came to the department precisely from the position of director of SE "Ukrvugilya".
My interlocutor from the SBI could not provide an answer to the question of whether Galushchenko and his deputy Hailo will get out of the water this time "dry." This question, according to him, remains open for now, because the investigation is ongoing.
And if these accusations are justified, then Galushchenko and Hailo must answer according to the law.
