The Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine (GTSO) took less than a year to become Ukraine’s most profitable company.
Since it launched in January 2020, the independent gas network topped the list of the country’s best-performing companies in 2020, published on May 31 by open-source analytics service OpenData.
According to OpenData, only 38% of companies in Ukraine are officially profitable.
The GTSO made over $1 billion (Hr 28 billion) in 2020. In second place, agricultural company Mriya made over $787 million (Hr 21.6 billion) and the Southern Mining and Processing Plant placed third with $663 million (Hr 18 billion).
The GTSOU’s parent company MGU, Trunk Gas Pipelines of Ukraine comes next with $546 million (Hr 15.2 billion), followed by Poltava Mining and Processing Plant with $400 million (Hr 11 billion). Mobile company KyivStar reported $364 million (Hr 10 billion) last year.
The list of profitable companies included at least three that belong to Ukraine’s richest oligarch, Rinat Akhmetov: The Southern Mining and Processing Plant, gas producer Naftogazvydobuvannya and financial holding System Capital Management.
Here is a brief rundown of 2020’s top three performers:
Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine (GTSO) — $1 billion
The GTSO replaced Ukrtransgaz as the operator of the country’s gas transmission system in January 2020. It’s now independent from the state-owned oil and gas company Naftogaz.
The move, widely known as “unbundling,” was supposed to open a new chapter in Ukraine’s gas market in line with European standards.
About 80% of the GTSO’s profit in 2020 came from transporting Russian gas to Europe and just 20% came from supplying gas to local consumers.
Mryia Agro Holding — $787 million
Mriya is a group of agricultural companies established in 1992.
The UK-registered unit of Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) bought Mriya in September 2018, less than a month after Mriya finished restructuring its $1.1 billion in debt.
The Ukrainian company defaulted in 2014 after it failed to repay its loans when its previous owners, the Huta family, reportedly stole investors’ money and fled Ukraine. Foreign creditors, including banks BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole, took over the ownership and saved the company from bankruptcy.
The acquisition of Mriya gave SALIC control over 165,000 hectares of farmland in central and western Ukraine, as well as grain elevators, plants, a potato storage area, and equipment.
Mriya’s land bank currently covers four regions of western Ukraine: Ternopil, Khmelnytskyi, Chernivtsi and Ivano-Frankivsk.
Southern Mining and Processing Plant — $663 million
The Southern Mining and Processing Plant belongs to Akhmetov’s vertically integrated metal holding Metinvest.
Based in Kryvyi Rih, a city 420 kilometers southeast of Kyiv, the mining company produces iron ore concentrate and sinter for the domestic market. Nearly 50% of iron ore concentrate is exported to China.
Other companies
The OpenData list of the most profitable companies in Ukraine in 2020 also includes:
- Naftogazvydobuvannya — $218 million
- Supermarket chain ATB Market — $208 million
- System Capital Management — $193 million
- UkrGasVydobuvannya, Ukraine’s main gas producer — $178 million
