The authorities of the “Servant of the People” party sold the massive strategic state enterprise, the “United Mining and Chemical Company,” to Azerbaijani businessman Nasib Hasanov

Let me explain why this decision is harmful to the country:

The United Mining and Chemical Company is a European leader in the extraction of titanium and zirconium ores. Its structure includes the Vilnohirsk Mining and Metallurgical Plant, located in the Dnipropetrovsk region, and the Irshansk Mining and Processing Plant in the Zhytomyr region.

You would be hard-pressed to find a more senseless and criminal decision, even by the extremely low standards of the “Ukrainian” authorities. In the midst of a full-scale war for the survival of the Ukrainian people, the “Servants” are selling off a massive strategic state enterprise that controls enormous capacities for the production of ilmenite, zircon, and rutile – raw materials for the titanium industry. Titanium is a strategic resource for the defense sector.

Instead of directing the company’s profits towards defense and social needs, they will now end up in private hands, while the fate of thousands of Ukrainians, who directly depend on the company’s operations, hangs in the balance. Furthermore, the government sold the enterprise for next to nothing, as $96 million is a laughably low price for long-term control over such resources.

The new owner is Azerbaijani businessman Nasib Hasanov, who is close to their President Aliyev, who, in turn, maintains perfectly normal market relations with Russian imperialism. Just think of the expanded agreements between “Gazprom” and “Socar.”

We are convinced that this step could have been avoided if, instead of empty complaints about the inefficiency of state management, the government had provided the company with leadership that would run the enterprise in the interests of the Ukrainian people, rather than for its own corrupt gain. It’s telling that “UMCC” was highly profitable for years, until the government began preparing it for sale, deliberately driving it into losses. The “Servants” and their predecessors intentionally neglected UMCC’s industrial capacities, tolerating schemes to embezzle funds through the sale of raw materials via intermediary companies controlled by management. This led to a gradual reduction in the company’s profitability and created wage arrears.

Thus, instead of using the company’s potentially huge profits to fill the state budget, provide decent wages for its workers, and develop Ukrainian heavy industry by utilizing UMCC’s titanium resources, the government did everything possible to hand over this strategic asset to private interests in the midst of a full-scale war.

The privatization of “UMCC” is undoubtedly an irresponsible and blatantly criminal decision by the authorities! Systemic economic challenges cannot be solved by such actions, which only worsen the country’s economic situation.

We, People’s power, have repeatedly emphasized the need to nationalize strategic enterprises, particularly in the mining, metallurgical, and fuel-energy sectors. This is especially crucial now, during a full-scale war of the Ukrainian people against Russian imperialism. We have consistently opposed the privatization of “UMCC” since the government first made statements on the matter.

It is clear that under a proper parliament, this enterprise must be immediately returned to state ownership! The country’s strategic industrial capacities and resource base must serve the security and well-being of the Ukrainian people, not the lavish lifestyles of billionaires.

Simoroz Oleg Alexandrovich

Tags: corruption investigation Ukraine Ukraine government