“According to Dankova, the key task for the state is to ensure security – both physical and investment.”, — write: www.unian.ua
According to Dankova, the key task for the state is to ensure security – both physical and investment.
Julia DankovaBig business, as the basis of the export economy, should become a priority direction of the state’s security policy during the war: companies expect from the authorities, first of all, security guarantees, predictable tariff and tax policies, as well as support in solving the personnel crisis. The financial director of the Metinvest Group, Yuliya Dankova, told about it.
According to Dankova, the growth of tax revenues to the budget is not related to the improvement of financial results of big business.
“The dynamics of our group’s financial indicators are definitely not positive. The increase in tax revenues is associated with an increase in the military levy rate from 1.5% to 5%, indexation of resource taxes, land fees, etc.,” she said.
Dankova also noted that in 2024, Metinvest paid UAH 19.8 billion in taxes and fees in Ukraine, which is 36% more than in 2023. The company expects to maintain approximately this level despite the shutdown of part of the capacities.
According to Dankova, the key task for the state is to ensure security – both physical and investment.
“Ukraine needs guarantees of investment security in order to restore investor confidence and attract capital. For the state, big business should be a priority direction of security policy, because it is big business that builds the basis for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises and a strong economy”, – emphasized the CFO of Metinvest.
Another priority for the state should be a stable and predictable tariff policy of state monopolies, noted Dankova: currently, for example, “Ukrzaliznytsia” practices transferring losses from passenger transportation to freight tariffs, while in developed countries social services are compensated through public service obligations, and not at the expense of private business. And the Ingulets GZK does not work due to high tariffs for electricity transmission – this also creates a risk of stopping other enterprises, and therefore – a drop in tax revenues.
Another critical block is personnel policy and labor shortage: according to Metinvest’s CFO, there is a shortage of both qualified specialists and labor personnel, and the shortage of personnel at enterprises reaches 20%. She connects this with mobilization, migration of the population and deterioration of the situation with the training of qualified personnel, emphasizing that the business independently integrates mobilized workers, but expects support from the state as well.
However, despite the risks and wartime conditions, Metinvest continues to invest in Ukrainian and foreign projects. But the implementation of these plans directly depends on whether the state will make big business a priority of its security, tariff and personnel policy, the financial director summarized.
As you know, Rinat Akhmetov’s Metinvest company is in the top ten of the rating of the largest private taxpayers of Ukraine: since the beginning of the war, it has transferred more than UAH 70 billion to the budgets of all levels in Ukraine. The company is also included in the rating of the largest investors of Ukraine: every year the company invests 12 billion in investment projects. In addition, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the company has provided Ukraine with UAH 9.7 billion in aid, of which UAH 5.2 billion is for the support of the Armed Forces within the framework of the “Steel Front” initiative.