Shmyhal offers EU to build electric car batteries plant in Ukraine

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Photo/Cabinet of Ministers/Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmygal

Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmygal held an online meeting with Vice President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations and Forecasting Marosh Sefchovich, discussing ways to intensify cooperation in the field of critical raw materials and building a strategic partnership between the EU and Ukraine in this area, the Uryadoviy Courier reports.

Shmyhal noted that the main goal of Ukraine in the field of economic cooperation with the EU is the further integration of the Ukrainian state into the internal EU market, as enshrined in the provisions of the Association Agreement.

The head of government noted that it is important for Ukraine to initiate a joint project for the geological study of ore occurrences of minerals and, during 2021, to prepare for the auction several deposits of those minerals that are included in the EU strategic list.

“We have previously talked with the EBRD about a possible project to verify the reserves of mineral deposits in Ukraine. The EBRD is ready to provide approximately EUR 200 million. For Ukraine, it would be important to help the EU in considering such a credit line at the level of the European Commission, so that the EBRD and I could work out this issue. This project concerns not only the verification of reserves, but also the preparation of deposits for the auction,” Shmygal said.

The Prime Minister also proposed to apply an innovative cluster approach in the development of cooperation in the raw materials sector: “We could consider the possibility of building a plant on the territory of Ukraine for the production of batteries for electric cars or the production of electric buses that could be supplied to European countries and other world markets.”

Ukraine, according to Shmygal, is also ready to consider the possibility of launching a joint project to support Ukraine to verify the available information on the explored and potential reserves of critical raw materials.

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