While Viktor Yanukovych is in the USA discussing, amongst other matters, the struggle against corruption in Ukraine, [AUR #794] corruption continues unabated in his own KabMin back home.
I've loosely translate parts of an item from today's 'Obkom' website:
"On November, 20th «Обком» wrote about participation of high-placed officials in corrupt deals in field of power generation, in particular the lobbying of the Hungarian company 'Еmfesz kft', which is directly related to the notorious Dmytro Firtash. This has ended with the setting up a contract for the delivery of 160 MW/hour of electric power to Hungary, and to a company run by friends of vice-prime minister Andriy Klyuyev, which is to receive 45 MW/hour of electric power for export. The specified companies at the time of signing of the contract had no licenses for operating in the field of electric power.
Reliable sources have informed us, that PM Yanukovch read out 'Obkom's' previous revelations to his colleagues, and on November 22nd had a stern conversation with vice-prime minister Klyuyev about these schemes. Victor Fedorovich demanded that these disgraceful shinannigans should end.
Ironically the conversation between the two «донов» took place on the second anniversary of the "Orange Revolution" - and the KabMin discussed the topic of corruption amongst orange ministers, and yet publicly nothing has been said about corruption in the energy sector of the government which is dominated by PoR. PM Yanukovych has remained silent on Klyuyev's and [Fuel and Energy minister] Boyko's "schemes" to export electric power.
Moreover, after vice-premier Klyuyev received his 'dressing down', he, together with his friends merely ineptly disguised their participation in the corrupt scheme, ostensibly by selling their share of the deal to the Slovak company 'Energo Odbyt'.
In particular, as we reported earlier, the 'Energo Odbyt' company, until 26th October 2006, was called 'Affinity', which was owned in turn by several citizens of Slovakia. The last Slovak owner of the company was a certain Yan Mital, who owned it from 22.12.2005 until 17.10.2006.
After this it became enmeshed in the "Donetsk" scheme: the owners of the company became "S-Plus Trade", Tamara Lysenko from Donetsk, and Alexander Rukhlyada, also from Donetsk. Tamara Lysenko is a business-partner of the Klyuyev brothers involved in export of coal from Ukraine. It is known that Nikolai Pashkevich who heads 'Ukrinterenergo", and vice-premier Andrey Klyuyev, have friendly relations.
And so, after the 'man-to-man' conversation between prime-minister and vice-premier, the Justice Ministry of Slovakia website [link provided on source webpage] posted certain changes, namely: Tamara Lysenko and Alexander Rukhlyada have sold the shares in the company "Energo Odbyt".
And though on the day of our publication - on November, 20th - the website site of the Ministry of Justice of Slovakia gave the above-mentioned citizens of Ukraine as registered proprietors, after a few days their Slovak comrades changed this, and and instead of Lytsenko and Rukhlyada, the shareholders of 'Energo Odbyt became a certain company called 'Surety'.
But amazingly, that same site of the Slovakian Ministry of Justice specifies that 'Surety' was founded on 27th October 2006 and is totally owned bya Czech company 'Garzone' whose business activities includes trade in the goods, intermediary trade services and real estate rental. This dubious company 'Garzone' was set up on 13th February 2006 and is jointly owned by a Kristina Vencelova (50 %) and Helena Kucinaiova (50 %).
We have no doubt that these two Czech ladies have already sold an option to two Ukrainian citizens on purchase of their shares, and can state with confidence that Tamara Lysenko and Alexander Rukhlyada had simply transferred their shares on a temporary basis to hide loose ends, but on the Ministry of Justice of Slovakia website all of them equally appear involved in 'Energo Odbyt' and continue to work on the supervisory council of the company.
Probably, these two loyal comrades of the president of 'Ukrintenergo' simply didn't not have time to hide behind a chain of companies because it was necessary to urgently sign contracts on the export of the electric power. So it turned out thus: "We wanted matters to work out for the best, but it turned out the same as always".
In the meantime, while friends of vice-premier Klyuyev searched for ways to cover up their tracks, the second participant of scandal, the company "Еmfesz kft" i.e. Yuriy Boyko and Dmytro Firtash, received from 'Ukrintenergo' 160 MWatts/hour of electric power for export, and strove to formalize its export to Hungary.
In Hungary the supply of electric power and related business is conducted in an open, competitive market, so the Hungarian state power utility company conducted an open bidding competition. As a result, Firtash's 'Еmfesz kft' could only acquire the right to deliver 1 MWatt/hour of power.
Therefore, Mr. Firtash, had to think again. Having understood that in Hungary he cannot receive a necessary quota by simply applying administrative pressure and, probably, after a friendly consultation with fuel and energy minister Boyko, he decided to direct a delegation of "experts" from Hungary to prime-minister Yanukovych in order that he convice the Hungarian side of the need to give the necessary capacities for the supply of electric power to 'Еmfesz kft'.
Now all that remains to be seen whether Victor Fedorovych will listen to Firtash's comrades and introduce shadow schemes for export of electric power from Ukraine at an international level, and also observe the Hungarian government's reaction to this.
LEvko thinks that skimming off of funds that should be going to state coffers will continue as long as Ukraine obtains below-market-rate gas [used for generating electricity which can easily be sold-on for profit], and as long as the Boyko's, Firtash's, Klyuev's, Azarov's etc. are in positions of power. [See above-mentioned AUR for more on RosUkrEnergo]
The Klyuyev brothers are now investing their mazuma in Austrian real estate.
*A cynical explantion given to me many years ago by an Ukrainian when I queried him on his abuse of his official position.
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