Top managers of the State Enterprise “Ukrspyrt” support the draft law offering company privatization. The author of that draft law is the People’s Deputy Ihor Lapin (Narodnyi Front). He believes that privatization is the most suitable formula of alcohol industry denationalization. Yuri Luchechko, the Acting CEO of “Ukrspyrt” told 112.ua about his position in his interview. That formula will be defended during the committee of agrarian policy and land relations.
It (formula – ed.) provides for alcohol industry decentralization in three stages. Let’s be honest; it would be reckless to offer for sale the whole industry at a time. As a matter of fact, there’s nothing to be privatized. “Ukrspyrt” is the monster, you know? 80 plants, thousand of workers, piles of documents, unsolved issues. Zillion criminal cases. Documents are withdrawn here and there. If we look at “Ukrspyrt” from the legal perspective, we are on the bottom of a deep black ocean now. If the State Property Fund starts to examine our facilities for privatization, it will understand that it has nothing to sell” told us the company Acting CEO.
“However, according to the formula offered in Lapin’s draft law, the companies with the actual amortization of only 70% will be included in the first stage. They are potential sites for reprofiling for the manufacture of any other types of products. The companies that may be offered for sale at the second stage need hands. We’ll insist on the requirement under which the investor will have to keep working places for engineering and technical personnel” added Yuri Luchechko.
According to Lapin, the draft law has passed through the economic policy committee, was approved, and is ready for the debating chamber.
Before privatization, says Ukrspyrt’s Acting CEO, the companies will be grouped by categories.
“Now, we conduct a technical audit of our companies and develop the electronic assets accounting system where the companies will be grouped by categories. Now, at the end of the year, the annual inventory is scheduled. In particular, its results must be the basis for the future electronic accounting system of the companies. We had a big technical conference with production divisions, each of them had its own task. We asked them to give questionnaires to plants before starting the inventory. Among others, there will be the following questions: the availability of fixed assets, when the company worked for the last time, which capacity, what it produced and what it may produce. Also, there will be questions about the number of employees, staff list, the number of dwellers in a settlement where the company is located. We will point out the key partners of production sites (distilling companies).
By the way, on October 10 I will get the programmers’ opinion about all that and the register’s work. I think we’ll need at least 2-3 months to implement the project. We have already prepared a letter to the SPFU. We ask that its employees participate that process. We are ready to include their questions to our questionnaires”, summarized Yuri Luchechko.
“My opinion is: state alcohol must be on shelves because it is the guaranteed quality. Now, private companies supply 100% of products. There’s also a distillery of the State Presidential Affairs Department, but it is a small manufacturer with certain turnover mostly for the image. In SE “Ukrspyrt” we have the offers on how to restore the state alcohol manufacture included into the Development Strategy. It is natural if we have filling lines, why shouldn’t we make horilka? It may be sold at minimum prices (indicative).
Lutsk used to make a great product. By the way, last week we held negotiations in Lutsk and the first alcohol products will be made there. Also, there will be filled a batch to be sent to Germany (Starozhytnia™). Generally, we plan to restart horilka manufacture in 3-4 Ukrspyrt’s production sites.
– We can see the big potential, first of all in foreign markets. Actually, Ukrainian horilka is highly demanded now.
We are talking about the countries which drink strong spirits: Germany, Italy, France, and the UK.”
