By KYIV. Sept 14 (Interfax-Ukraine) – OKKO, one of the largest gas station chains in Ukraine, has financed small and medium-sized farmers for a total of $25 million for the 2023 harvest, said Kseniya Huseva, the head of the customer relations department of the agricultural sector of OKKO, at the international conference “Black Sea Grain & Oil 2023. The Way to Recovery” on Thursday.
At the same time, she noted that 2023 was a successful year for the network in terms of financing the agricultural sector thanks to the largest financial portfolio in all the years of the company’s operation.
“We have distributed $25 million in funding. As a Ukrainian company, we believe in farmers and agricultural producers. We have placed greater emphasis not on agricultural holdings, but on the average and small farmer. We believe that they are the ones who need the greatest support that we were able to provide,” Huseva said.
Speaking about the importance of financing the agro-industrial complex during the war, Huseva recalled that in 2022, representatives of all sectors of the economy related to agriculture saw that agricultural producers were in a difficult financial situation due to an increase in sowing costs. In particular, the cost of mineral fertilizers increased by 80-90%, and petroleum products, prices for which were record highs during the spring and early summer of last year, also increased by 80%.
“2023 has become a different year. The cost of sowing has almost returned to pre-war levels. If we talk about fertilizers, pesticides, etc., prices have returned to the level of 2021. However, this does not apply to petroleum products, which are now more expensive than they were before the war,” Huseva emphasized.
The OKKO representative noted that the situation with prices for fuel and lubricants products is very painful for the agricultural sector, especially given the difficulties with the logistics of agricultural goods.
She stated that the agricultural sector needs, as in 2022, additional funding, while OKKO is optimistic about 2024 and will continue to support farmers.
