During the joint press conference held by the presidents of Ukraine and Romania in Bucharest on October 30, the Romanian president Traian Basescu stated that his country was not interested in participating in the completion of the Ukraine-based Krivoy Rog Mining and Processing Works of Oxidized Ore (KGOKOR) project, but rather would like the Ukrainian government to reimburse its initial investment in the project.
Mr. Traian continued by adding that Romania expects to receive the sum of around $1 billion, which the country invested in the KGOKOR construction. The total amount will depend on the results of the possible privatization of KGOKOR.
As previously reported by SteelOrbis, the construction of KGOKOR commenced during Soviet times, with the main shareholders including Ukraine (56.4 percent), Romania (28 percent), and Slovakia (15.6 percent). In September of the current year, the Ukrainian State Property Fund (SPFU) announced that it would sign an agreement to form a joint venture company with Russian companies Metalloinvest and Smart-Holding for the conclusion of the KGOKOR construction. However, the implementation of the decision has been postponed for an as-yet-undetermined period. Meanwhile, at the end of September, the largest Ukrainian steel producer ArcelorMittal Kriviy Rih expressed interest in KGOKOR's construction.