Workers at Ukraine's Largest Chemical Plant Threaten Strike Over Three-Year Salary Arrears

In Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk region, employees of LLC "Karpatneftekhim," which is undergoing bankruptcy proceedings, are threatening to strike due to three years of unpaid wages.

As reported by Delo.ua, this was announced by the mayor of Kalush, Andriy Naida.

According to him, an open meeting with the employees of LLC "Karpatneftekhim" was held on July 22, initiated to find real ways out of the critical situation at the enterprise.

Naida stated that, despite official invitations, neither the owners of the enterprise nor representatives of the Ivano-Frankivsk regional military administration or the Kalush district military administration attended the meeting.

The mayor of Kalush reminded that the workers of the enterprise, which provides wastewater treatment in the region, have not received their salaries since 2023.

"They are the ones who ensure wastewater treatment, supply water for industrial zone enterprises, including relocated businesses, and maintain the operation of systems that depend on the ecological and technogenic safety not only of the Kalush community but also of a significant part of the region," Naida emphasized.

He added that it is frustrating to realize that today many are not concerned about the risks of technogenic and ecological danger or the possible consequences for Prykarpattia in the event of the enterprise's shutdown.

Naida emphasized that the Kalush City Council is using all possible legal mechanisms to resolve the issue, sending dozens of official appeals and repeatedly raising the matter in relevant ministries.

The mayor noted that there are hazardous substances on the enterprise's territory that require constant professional control and proper storage. This is ensured by the workers of the enterprise. Therefore, any delay in resolving the situation creates serious risks.

Naida mentioned that he discussed the problem with some co-owners of the enterprise. At the same time, one of the beneficiaries of "Karpatneftekhim," Andriy Vesely, is not engaging in dialogue, and despite the fact that the enterprise shipped products worth UAH 1 billion, wages to the workers have still not been paid.

The workers of "Karpatneftekhim" decided to go directly to the head of the Ivano-Frankivsk regional military administration, Svitlana Onyshchuk. For this, the Kalush City Council will provide transportation.

"The goal of this meeting is to achieve a direct appeal from the head of the regional military administration to the President of Ukraine for the prompt resolution of the situation. The next step we see is to raise the issue at the level of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to compel the owners to make the necessary decisions and prevent the complete shutdown of the enterprise," Naida noted.

He warned that if the owners of "Karpatneftekhim" do not settle the salary debts by August 1, the workers will stop coming to work starting September 3.

Recall that the Economic Court of Ivano-Frankivsk region opened bankruptcy proceedings for LLC "Karpatneftekhim" on February 27, one of the largest petrochemical enterprises in Ukraine.

LLC "Karpatneftekhim" was established in 2004 based on the production capacities of the Kalush enterprise "Oriana." The plant specializes in the production of:

• chlorine;
• caustic soda;
• ethylene;
• propylene;
• vinyl chloride;
• polyethylene.

Until 2017, the plant was controlled by the Russian group "Lukoil." After the imposition of Ukrainian sanctions, the asset was sold to the Dutch company Karpaty Chemical BV, whose beneficiaries became Ilham Mamedov and Igor Shutskiy.

After the start of the full-scale war, the enterprise halted production. In October 2022, the asset was seized as part of a criminal case on suspicion of tax evasion and money laundering.

The management of the plant was transferred to ARMA, but the agency was unable to implement the mechanism for transferring the enterprise to effective management due to legal inaccuracies in the court decision.

ARMA has announced several competitions for selecting a manager for "Karpatneftekhim," but there were no applicants. As Delo.ua reported, this is due to the fact that some property, which was indicated in the transfer order to the Agency as the property of the seized enterprise (production buildings, workshops, and tanks), does not actually belong to it. Thus, concluding a notarial management agreement for the specified property is impossible.

In December 2023, the seizure was lifted.

According to Youcontrol, the beneficiaries of one of the largest petrochemical plants in Ukraine are Kyiv resident Igor Shutskiy and a UAE resident Ilham Mamedov. In June 2024, a new co-owner appeared in the ownership structure --- businessman Andriy Vesely from Drohobych, who bought a 33% stake for less than $1 million. This valuation significantly discounted the historical value of one of the largest chemical assets in the country.

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