Ukrainian Railways ends Q1 with profit

MOSCOW. April 9 (Interfax) - Ukrainian Railways closed Q1 2024 with profit, CEO Yevgeny Lyashchenko said in his statement at a meeting with journalists, as reported by Ukrainian media.

Lyashchenko did not specify the profit, the media reported. According to a presentation made at the meeting, Ukrainian Railways' net profit totaled UAH 5 billion in 2023.

Among the crucial factors that had a positive impact on Ukrainian Railways' financial results, the presentation indicates the increased revenue from passenger transportation due to an 11% increase in passenger traffic (+UAH 1.42 billion), lower costs of materials and repairs due to cost-saving measures, in particular, the use of used materials (+UAH 4.81 billion UAH), and a more stable hryvnia exchange rate than originally expected (+ UAH 4.53 billion).

Additionally, the cancellation of the obligation to pay the land tax for objects in the territories not controlled by Kiev (+UAH 0.69 billion), the lower land tax rate due to the re-registration of land plots (+ UAH 0.55 billion), higher revenue from auxiliary activities, namely, from security services by 25% and passenger services by 24% (+UAH 527 million), had a positive impact.

At the same time, the lower revenue from freight transportation in 2023 due to the temporary suspension of the grain corridor and convention restrictions on agricultural exports to the European Union (-UAH 8.57 billion), as well as higher wages to avoid an outflow of staff (-UAH 3.41 billion) had an adverse impact on Ukrainian Railways' financial performance.

Ukrainian Railways transferred 50% of its 2023 profits to the state budget in the form of dividends, Lyashchenko said.