19 July 2021, Monday, 15:35 311

Ukraine will have to modernize its investment policy – Andriy Brodskyy

Автор тексту: Oleksandr Mazur

Редактор: Яків Сташинський

Andriy Brodskyy. Photos from open sources

In the next three to five years, Ukraine will have to significantly modernize its investment policy and bring it in line with the pace of the development of the business environment and global trends. This statement was made by founder and CEO of Velta LLC Andriy Brodskyy in an interview with host of the Big Money channel on YouTube Eugeniy Chernyak.

The businessman points out to intense competition for capital and innovation in the world; some countries have created state policies with unprecedented incentives for foreign investors to relocate their projects from traditional territories to develop them in new ones. Against this background, Ukraine, according to him, still lags behind in the competition. "If nothing changes in our country, in two or three years, we will have those who only manage budget funds or who have some enterprises privatized in due time and simply cannot abandon them here," Andriy Brodskyy said.

For example, he says, Dubai has created the most comfortable conditions for foreign investors, such as zero taxation, while permits are issued through a simple and quick procedure; there is an available credit resource, and country risk is low. This is one of the reasons why Velta is planning to start building a titanium metal plant in one of Dubai's free economic zones. The company intends to complete the construction within 10 months, the project will cost up to US$50 million.

At the same time, according to Andriy Brodskyy, the business environment in Ukraine is in many ways more advanced than the external conditions in which it has to exist. "I am not even talking about corruption now. Legislation also requires modernization. So, jointly with the Ukrainian Institute of the Future, we have designed a strategy for the development of the titanium industry in Ukraine until 2030, showcased it and are still trying to bring it to adoption through various state agencies. And it's not about Velta itself: I'm interested in the development of the industry here, in Ukraine. I, like many international experts, consider the titanium industry to be of paramount importance, titanium itself is a metal of the 21st century, and Ukraine has a powerful heritage in this industry: PJSC Titanium Institute in Zaporizhia, the Zaporizhia Titanium and Magnesium Combine, two ore mining and processing plants. This is the huge potential we have been losing. But there is still unrealized potential: human, scientific, industrial, and natural one. All this must certainly be implemented," he said.

According to the founder of Velta, his company is currently focused on international development and patenting; some projects are being implemented in the United States. At the same time, he says, the development of base sites in Ukraine is fundamental; there is a gradual transition from a business using raw materials to a high-tech entity with vertical integration and with reference to Ukraine and the hometown of Dnipro.

As Andriy Brodskyy said during the interview, the key component of Velta's success is a team of professionals, first of all, these are scientists and technologists. "While talking to me at specialized conferences, the world's best titanium industry experts mentioned the names of the people who live and work here, with us. Therefore, one shouldn't underestimate the Ukrainian professional community," the founder of Velta commented on the situation.

Velta LLC is part of Velta Holding US Inc., which also includes the Velta RD Titan lab and the Velta Titanium Metal R&D Center. Since 2021, Velta has been mining and processing titanium raw materials (ilmenite concentrate) at the Birzulivske deposit in Kirovohrad region, Ukraine, and holds a license for the industrial development of the Likarivske deposit. The company accounts for 2% of the global titanium feedstock market.

Ukraine possesses about 20% of the world's raw titanium assets.

Ilmenite concentrate is a key titanium raw material; it is used to produce titanium sponge (7% of global production), electrodes (2-3%), and titanium dioxide (90-91%), a white pigment used in a wide range of production, from pharmaceuticals and paints and varnishes to paper and makeup products. Metallic titanium is an important raw material for 3D printing and is widely consumed by science-based industries, namely prosthetics manufacturing, spacecraft and submarine construction.

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