By KYIV. Nov 3 (Interfax-Ukraine) – At a meeting on October 30 of this year, the Pechersky District Court of Kyiv reduced the bail of Viktor Lotous, the head of the board of Poltava Mining and Processing Plant (Poltava GOK), owned by Ferrexpo, from UAH 999.991 million (about $27 million) to UAH 400 million (about $11 million), which the group decided to pay.
According to Ferrexpo exchange information on Thursday, in January 2023, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) of Ukraine carried out several searches as part of investigations into alleged illegal mining. The National Police of Ukraine also investigated the same case and in January 2023 conducted searches and collected mineral samples at Poltava GOK.
It is noted that the position of Poltava GOK was and remains that the minerals in question are not a separate mineral resource, but represent waste (crushed stone) remaining from the crushing of iron ore during the technological process for the production of iron ore pellets.
The sale of crushed stone has been subject to inspections by the State Service of Geology and Subsoil of Ukraine for many years. The group has not conducted crushed stone sales since September 2021. Poltava GOK’s position is that, on the basis of its existing license for the extraction of mineral resources, GOK complies with the relevant legislation.
In June 2023, the SBI filed suspicions against three representatives of the top management of GOK and the head of one division for allegedly selling dumps (waste) without the appropriate permit. Among them was the head of the board of Poltava GOK, Viktor Lotous. The PGOK employees were detained by the SBI and subsequently released after posting bail totaling UAH 122 million ($3.4 million), approved by the court.
Subsequently, the National Police issued a suspicion of illegal mining to the head of the PGOK. On September 26, 2023, at the first court hearing on the claims of the chairman of the board, he was detained on bail in the amount of UAH 999 million (about $27 million).
As noted in the group’s production report for the third quarter of 2023, an appeal was filed against this decision, and at a meeting on October 30, 2023, the bail was reduced to UAH 400 million (about $11 million).
