In the presence of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is on an official visit to the United Kingdom, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Her Majesty's Secretary of State, acting through the Export Credit Guarantee Department, which is operating under the name UK Export Finance, and the Cabinet of Ministers represented by the Minister of Finance of Ukraine.
According to the Memorandum, the British export credit agency UKEF resumes work on the Ukrainian market to support British exports. UKEF will be able to provide credit guarantees of up to 2.5 billion pounds for British-Ukrainian trade contracts.
"We brought two and a half billion pounds from the UK. This is a new page of Ukrainian-British cooperation and an unprecedented event for Ukraine," Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.
Specific areas outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Ukraine will be able to attract UKEF support.
"These funds can be used to implement investment projects in such priority areas as security and defense, agriculture, infrastructure, energy and healthcare. But we are not limited to them," the President added.
UKEF supports the export of all types of goods and services from the UK and can help businesses of all sizes successfully fulfill an export contract. Loans will be issued for 10 years at a very attractive rate - 2.5% in euros and 3.5% in pounds sterling. The grace period of the loan is three years, the level of localization of the British share of production is 20%, and this is the lowest similar requirement among other export credit agencies in the West. This means that the loan can be issued subject to the involvement of British manufacturers only for one-fifth.
"The decision to bring UK Export Finance to the Ukrainian market and sign this Memorandum is a sign of trust and support from the United Kingdom for the transformational changes that are currently taking place in Ukraine. I am convinced that this will open new opportunities for partnership between the economies of our countries, in particular in the fields of defense and security, renewable energy sources and transport infrastructure," Minister of Finance Serhiy Marchenko noted.
