Ukrainian Railways not to be funded from budget this year - CEO

MOSCOW. April 8 (Interfax) - Ukrainian Railways will not be funded from the national budget in 2024 while such funding was reduced 58.3% in 2023 compared to 2022 to UAH 4.179 billion, Ukrainian media said, citing a presentation by Ukrainian Railways CEO Yevgeny Lyashchenko.

The budget allotted UAH 10.095 billion for Ukrainian Railways in 2022 for the smooth operation of railway transport under martial law, emergency repairs of railway infrastructure, maintenance of rolling and hauling stock and payment of wages, the company said.

In addition, the budget assigned UAH 6 million for the planning and reconstruction of a 1,435 mm European-standard track from Chop to the Uzhgorod station as far as the Uzhgorod platform. Almost UAH 83 million were allocated as a post-payment for a batch of passenger cars delivered under a contract concluded in 2021.

Of the UAH 4.179 billion allocated from the national budget in 2023, UAH 1.905 billion prepaid the delivery of passenger cars under a contract signed in 2023, UAH 1.736 billion post-paid the delivery of passenger cars under a contract signed in 2021 and UAH 538 million financed infrastructural projects.

In addition, funds will assigned to renovate facilities and electrify the Vasilkov - Vasilkov II - Cherkasy - Taras Shevchenko section, renovate the State Border - Mostyska II - Sknyliv section with the construction of a new terminal in Sknyliv and build a railway bridge across the Dnieper in Kiev (with access routes) on the Kiev-Moskovsky-Darnitsa line.