TERWIN is among the top 10 successful investor companies in Ukraine
03.07.2024
Advanced business in Ukraine has already adapted to the realities of war and is actively planning for the future. The best evidence of this is the large investment projects across multiple sectors.
Even in Ukraine's most challenging period in history, businesses continue to fund their core operations. Development of personnel remains a priority for successful companies. Large players typically do not shy away from R&D directions, as investments are seen as a move forward. All companies aiming to stay competitive must update equipment, adopt and develop technologies, and preserve and expand human capital.
Prior to the full-scale invasion, gross accumulation of fixed capital in Ukraine reached 700 billion UAH (approximately $23-25 billion) annually. While updated data from State Statistics are unavailable, it is reasonable to assume that this figure remains in the hundreds of billions of hryvnias even during war and economic downturns. Following the initial months of the major conflict and stabilization of operational activities by late 2022, companies began increasing investments. Successful businesses looking to remain in or enter the Ukrainian market not only work here and now but also strive to develop, leveraging new opportunities.
In times of turmoil, opportunities always arise. Companies see such prospects in Ukraine and are ready to invest in manufacturing and infrastructure. Defense enterprises, including international giants like Rheinmetall and Baykar, and miltech players often represented by Ukrainian startups, are particularly active.
The reorientation of international trade towards the European Union has prompted extensive reconstruction of transport and warehouse logistics in Ukraine. Multibillion-dollar projects in this sector are underway, not only along the western border.
With faith in Ukraine and an eye on rapid recovery in our territories, agro-processing enterprises are developing, food factories and construction material plants are being built in Odessa, and overall construction could become a driver of economic recovery. According to a recent KSE study, $500 million in investments have been made and declared in this sector.
Even the most war-affected sectors are making significant capital investments. For example, Zaporizhstal metallurgical plant allocated over 1.2 billion UAH to equipment upgrades, while German firm Notus Energy is constructing wind power generation in the Odessa region with hundreds of megawatts.
As for R&D investments, two trends are evident. Large Ukrainian companies are increasingly allocating funds to research, establishing and updating relevant departments, and attracting top-notch specialists. The second trend directly responds to current needs: our country is becoming a platform for R&D and innovation testing in the miltech sector. Innovative solutions are tested on the battlefield tens of times faster than in any world laboratory.
Lastly, investments in "human capital" are noteworthy. Amidst workforce shortages, employers recognize the importance of a loyal, skilled, and cohesive team for business success. Besides necessary safety measures, companies have increasingly expanded personnel development programs, incentive systems, and mechanisms for mutual aid and veteran reintegration over the past year.
Decisions regarding investments reflect assessments of future benefits and risks, as well as business intentions regarding operations in specific markets. Thus, to understand how business circles evaluate Ukraine's future, examining case studies of specific players is crucial. "DS" shares the experiences of the most successful, in our view, investor companies that have chosen the most promising and important investment directions, focusing on personnel development and innovation financing. Based on these criteria, we have selected the top 10 companies, listed alphabetically by name, and prepared case studies of their investment projects. We hope the experiences of these successful businesses will be useful to other investors and to anyone interested in Ukraine's economic prospects. If you want to understand future business plans, look at where they invest.
TERWIN Corporation
TERWIN Corporation, which encompasses 17 companies across various sectors (including the EVA and VARUS networks), is in negotiations with investors regarding the implementation of the $700 million WINHUB logistics project. This project aims to develop logistics infrastructure in four regions: Lviv, Kyiv, Odesa, and Dnipropetrovsk.
Specifically, the corporation plans to construct Class A warehouse facilities covering a total area of 1 million square meters. Potential clients will be able to reduce operational costs by increasing the efficiency of warehouse utilization and speeding up delivery processes. They will also benefit from intermodality advantages and facilitate import and export operations (based on customs-licensed hub warehouses).
Simultaneously, the WINHUB presence regions will have more resources for development. The project envisages creating 25,000 jobs at state-of-the-art logistic facilities, surrounded by an extensive network of related businesses. Thus, communities will have more opportunities to support social infrastructure.