In 2023, USD 14 billion will be needed for the rapid recovery of Ukraine. In particular, priority areas for cooperation between Ukraine and Korea are: electricity and hydrogen, production of energy equipment, development of green metallurgy, logistics, production of lithium and batteries, electric cars and urban transport. Ukraine is interested in the extensive involvement of Korean business in the implementation of joint investment projects for the reconstruction of Ukraine and the restoration of its economy.

These and other topics were discussed by First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yuliia Svyrydenko during a meeting with the Korean-Ukrainian Association of Trade and Industry (KUATI) and Korean companies on 15 May. The meeting was attended by such Korean companies as Viva Mobility (JJ Group), Woojin, SoftBank, SK Mobile Energy, Tera Factory, Doosan Enerbility, KEPCO, LS, Daemyoung, Hanwha, Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hyundai Corporation and TYM.

“We are facing two main tasks: do everything to win and start rebuilding Ukraine already today, without waiting for the end of the war. Projects worth hundreds of millions of US dollars have already been directed to the Advantage Ukraine platform. According to the World Bank estimates, the needs for the reconstruction of Ukraine already amount to more than USD 400 billion, and the financing of development projects, according to the Ministry of Economy estimates, is more than USD 500 billion. Investing in the development of Ukraine is a new perspective for Korean business, and we expect its participation in this process,” noted Yuliia Svyrydenko.

The First Deputy Prime Minister noted that it was about projects directly related to the reconstruction of Ukraine and projects aimed at the development of the economy: residential construction, renewable energy, battery production, shipbuilding, automotive, railway business and production of specialized agricultural machinery.

Thus, Yuliia Svyrydenko invited Korean companies producing electric cars and machine builders to cooperate, in particular, preliminary agreements were reached on the potential location of production facilities in Ukraine. 

The First Deputy Prime Minister offered Korean companies to locate their production facilities also in industrial parks as well as to join the development of industrial parks in Ukraine as their management companies. Ukraine, in turn, offers state incentives in the form of exemption from payment of import duty and VAT on imported equipment for manufacturing enterprises.

“We thank the Korean side for participating in the Luhansk conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine and the conference on the restoration of Ukraine in Berlin. We also expect the Korean side to participate in the Ukraine Recovery Conference, which will be held in July in London. Ukraine has an ambitious goal, which is to create a safe environment for people to live comfortably and do business in Ukraine within 12 months after the end of the war. I hope that Korean business will actively participate in this process,” emphasized Yuliia Svyrydenko.