Ukrainian govt enlarges loans for reconstruction of Ukrhydroenergo hydropower plants

MOSCOW. Dec 4 (Interfax) - While redistributing funds between the programs of several ministries, the Ukrainian government cut budget expenses and the provision of loans by 6.57 billion hryvni, most of which, 5.7 billion hryvni, will now be invested in the reconstruction of hydropower plants operated by Ukrhydroenergo.

Ukrainian media said, citing Government Representative in the Parliament Taras Melnichuk, that the programs of the Finance Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the Restoration Ministry and the Health Ministry were envisaged by the state budget's special fund for 2023 as investment programs funded by loans drawn by Ukraine from other countries, foreign financial institutions and international financial organizations.

The government thus cut the spending on the Interior Ministry's program of a unified aviation security and civil defense system by 2.7 billion hryvni and the Health Ministry's program of public healthcare improvement by 300 million hryvni (an investment program providing additional funds for Covid-19 containment).

It also cut loans for the Finance Ministry's program financing development projects with state borrowings by 117.99 million hryvni (an investment project refinancing energy effective investments of small and medium-sized enterprises), the Restoration Ministry's program of traffic safety in Ukrainian cities by 1.55 billion hryvni, and the Energy Ministry's programs of construction of the 750kV Zaporozhskaya-Kakhovskaya power transmission line by 506.24 million hryvni, reconstruction of transformer substations in Ukraine by 980.6 million hryvni, and construction of the 750kV Rovno NPP-Kievskaya power transmission line by 415.95 million hryvni.

At the same time, the government increased state budget loans from the Energy Ministry's programs of reconstruction of Ukrhydroenergo's hydropower plants by 5.7 billion hryvni and higher efficiency of power transmission (modernization of substations) by 5 million hryvni. The loans for the Restoration Ministry's program of the development of centralized heating supply in Ukraine and water supply in Nikolayev and Chernovtsy were enlarged by 232.44 million hryvni and the Interior Ministry's spending on the sea border protection system grew by 74 million hryvni.