Ukraine has promised the International Monetary Fund that it will privatize PJSC "Odesa Portside Plant", a major producer of ammonia and urea in Odessa region by July 2021.

This is stated in the draft memorandum that was submitted to the International Monetary Fund’s board of directors for consideration:

The State Property Fund (SPF) will initiate tenders for sale of at least two major State enterprises by the end of December 2020 if market conditions permit and at least three more by the end of June 2021.

Ukraine-IMF Memorandum (source: Ukrainian News)

According to the draft memorandum, the list of State enterprises that will be put up for sale includes the Odessa port plant (the others are: Centrenergo, President Hotel in Kiev, Electrotyazhmash State enterprise in Kharkov, United Mining and Chemical Company, and Krasnolimanskaya State coal company in Donetsk region).

The board of directors of the International Monetary Fund approved a new loan program for Ukraine on June 9. The first loan tranche under the program will amount to USD 2.1 billion.

In the spring of 2018, the State Property Fund already tried to sell the Odessa Port Plant for $ 54 million, which was 15 times lower than 5 years before (in 2015, the starting price of the enterprise was more than half a billion dollars, and in 2013 it was about more than $ 800 million).

About PJSC "Odesa Portside Plant"

Odessa Port Plant (OPP) is a leading Ukrainian nitrogen fertilizer producer and transhipment company benefiting from its advantageous location on the Black Sea coastline. The company was established in 1974 as a part of a USSR-wide programme of fertilizer plant construction.

OPP accounts for 23% of urea and 18% of ammonia production capacity in Ukraine, making it the largest producer of urea in the country and the second largest producer of ammonia. The only port facility capable of shipping ammonia in Ukraine with transhipment capacity of 4.0 mtpa in addition to urea transhipment capacity of 3.6 mtpa and methanol transhipment capacity of 1.0 mtpa. OPP used to export to over 30 countries worldwide, including EU countries and the USA.

OPP used to be the largest producer of ammonia and urea in Soviet Union. It is still the biggest terminal for transhipment of ammonia to marine vessel on the Black Sea. The Ukrainian State owns 99.6% of OPP shares.