Ukrainian government plans to purchase coal from the South African Republic through dubious suppliers instead of from direct manufacturers.
According to the first deputy minister for energy and coal industry Igor Martynenkov, the ministry is negotiating coal deliveries from SAR with a Swiss distributor Mercury. Search engines have no information about this company.
Last year State Enterprises Centreenergo and Ukrinterenergo purchased 1 million tons of coal from SAR not from local companies, but from a UK-based Steel Mont Ltd.
After the General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine started an investigation as to this contract Steel Mont Ltd dropped from the partnership.
Mass media have found out that the Steel Mont general manager – a local of India with British citizenship – resided in Ukraine. (Ukrainian metal)