And why does it matter? It's all about the money, in the billions of USD.
From Investigative Reporter Anna Babinets at “Slidstvo.Info”, August 14, 2012 (since disappeared from the website), this version (also disappeared) was hosted by the George Soros-funded Ukrainian NGO, the Anti-Corruption Action Centre (AntAC), August 26, 2012 archived at archive.ph and a few other places:
Kings of Ukrainian Gas
26.08.2012Our investigation began with a scandal. In order to find out who has been receiving the largest gas deposits during Yanukovych’s presidency, we sent a request to the State Service of Geology and Mineral Resources. The official response of Derzhgeonadr was somewhat unexpected. The list of companies that was returned to us included only state entities. But … no private ones or persons. It looked suspicious. We had already been approached by our colleagues from the “Ekonomichna Pravda”, who had sent the same question to Derzhgeonadr. But they got a response, which stipulated that, besides the state, there were many private organizations listed among the owners of gas deposits.Why did Derzhgeonadra suddenly begin to conceal information about the private owners of Ukrainian gas deposits? Previously, journalists sometimes didn’t even receive a response to their requests. But, presenting falsified documents instead of an outright refusal … this was the very first time that such a thing had happened!Iryna Zheleznyak, the Derzgeonadr employee, who had prepared the response to our request, refused to explain why the document had been falsified. She advised us to get in touch with the management. Unfortunately, Oleksandr Sushko, the director of the company, couldn’t find time to comment on this regrettable incident.As “Slidstvo.Info” soon discovered, Mr. Sushko has a reason for withholding this information. Before he was appointed to Derzhgeonadr, he was the director of a company belonging to one of the players of our investigation. A company, which had been allocated an incredible number of gas deposits over the last year. (Read more about this in the second part of our report).- “You’re wasting your time waiting for them to answer”.- told us the head of a department at the State Service of Geology and Mineral Resources in a private conversation- “As soon as Stavytsky was appointed Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, we were ordered to conceal all information on reserves and owners of gas deposits as much as possible. Moreover, even if you get true information officially, you actually cannot use it.”- Why?- “Because totally different persons and companies are really behind the official owner. For example, Oleksandr Yanukovych, the President’s son doesn’t get licenses for his company directly, but through the Zasyadko mine. And that’s the way it is with many gas deposits – it’s not easy to find who the real owner is, but all paths seem to lead upward towards the top.”As we had failed to get true answers from this state institution, we tried to find them by ourselves. Who has received the most gas deposits in two and a half years of Yanukovych’s rule? Whose names is Derzhgeonadr hiding so carefully? We decided to start with the President’s son.“Quid pro quo” (One good turn deserves another)The director of a large enterprise in the Donbas Region, personally acquainted with Yukhym Zvyahilsky, states that a year ago he spoke with the eternal chief of the Zasyadko mine.- You see, Yukhym has a dream: he’s still alive and in power, so he wants to privatize the Zasyadko mine. Well, Yukhim told me the following: “I visited the Tsar (Viktor Yanukovych – auth.). He doesn’t mind me privatizing the mine. But, the Tsar said: Put the gas deposits in your name, and hand half of them over to Oleksandr (Yanukovych’s son – auth.). Then we’ll give you the mine”.*** (documents and photos omitted, available at the archive)***Exchanging a state-owned company for gas resources and presenting it as a gift to your family – such a story is in the spirit of current Ukrainian reality. Even worse, it’s been confirmed by a lot of evidence. This means that Viktor Yanukovych and Yukhym Zvyhilsky may well be accused of taking possession of public property through abuse of official capacity.Let’s look at the hard facts:On November 19, 2010, the State Property Fund of Ukraine approves Order No.1710 on the privatization of the O.F. Zasyadko mine.A month later, on December 22, 2010, the government approves a decision to hand nine oil and gas fields in Eastern Ukraine to the Zasyadko mine without organizing tenders.“Slidstvo.Info” discovers that the Zasyadko mine gave four of these nine fields to an unknown company in Donetsk called Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC.This is how it happened: In 2011, the Zasyadko mine contributed 25 thousand UAH to the authorized capital of Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC. Having become a member of the founders, the mine could transfer its licenses for exploration and gas extraction to this obscure company. Information about this matter is recorded on the balance sheet of the O.F. Zasyadko Mine PJSC, which can still be found on the website of this coal company.***
We managed to find Oleh Kushch, Director of Geological Service in Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC, who said that the company was currently working in the Serbska, Zolotarevska, Syrotynska, and Nyzhnortyshchivska fields (Luhansk and Kharkiv Regions).These four fields appear on the list of nine fields that were previously transferred to the Zasyadko mine by the Cabinet of Ministers. The remaining five are being developed by the mine itself, a fact that was corroborated by Boris Bokiy, Deputy General Director of the Zasyadko mine.This means that by the end of 2010, the government had handed nine fields to Zasyadko mine, and the mine then transferred four of them to Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC in Donetsk in 2011.The final link in the chain of operations called “a mine in exchange for natural deposits” was to remove the mine as state-owned property. This is what actually happened on July 22, 2011.A question arises: Who is the owner of Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC, which received four gas fields from the famous mine?The founder of Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC is Gasinvest-Group LLC, which was in turn founded by SL-Group LLC. This “matryoshka” game finally ends at Eduard Slynko, who is the principal owner of SL-Group LLC.***
This resident of Donetsk is a Deputy of the Donetsk Regional Council, representing the Party of Regions, and… moonlighting as General Director of Management Assets Corporation (“MAKO”).***Deputy of Donetsk Regional Council, 6th Convocation (elections of 31.10.2010)SLYNKO Eduard Oleksandrovych (short biography)Date of birth: February10, 1967; Place of birth:_______; Date of election: October 31,2010; Elected: according to party list (Party of Regions); Party: Party of Regions; Education: Higher; Place of work: General Director of Management Assets Corporation (circled in red); (on the right) Party of Regions, member of the Commission for Environment and Mineral Resources“MAKO” is the cornerstone of Yanukovych’s family business. The owner and president of the corporation is the President’s son – Oleksandr. Earlier, Oleksandr Yanukovych and Eduard Slynko founded Donsnabtara LLC, where one of the founders to keep them company was Valentyna Arbuzova, the mother of Serhiy Arbuzov, Director of the National Bank of Ukraine. Moreover, one of Eduard Slynko’s favourite hobbies is guns.***But now Mr. Slynko will have less and less time to enjoy his hobby. After all, the President’s son has big ambitions in the gas business. Four gas fields, obtained without tenders – this is just the beginning. In May this year, Inter-Regional Gas Company LLC received the Baranykivska field free-of-charge from the Luhansk Regional Council for exploration and extraction of gas. According to our sources, the company, closely associated with Oleksandr Yanukovych, will soon get five more licenses....
....MUCH MORE
The sting, as Shakespeare said in The Taming of the Shrew, is in the tail.
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