Demining contractors in Ukraine will compete for work at auctions

The Center for Humanitarian Demining has announced tenders for the acquisition of demining services for agricultural lands based on applications submitted this year. According to the Ministry of Economic Development of Ukraine, the first three auctions will take place in the Prozorro system in the first half of March. Based on the results of the auctions, final price offers and winners will be determined, with whom contracts for demining will be signed.

Currently, Ukrainian agrarians have submitted over one hundred applications to participate in the compensation program. Over the next two weeks, winners will be determined to clear more than 470 hectares of land in Kharkiv and Mykolaiv regions. The expected cost for clearing 472.4 hectares will be 28.1 million hryvnias. The bidding will take place in a classic English auction format over three rounds to lower the starting price.

At present, the cost of demining one hectare depends on the level of land contamination. For example, on the largest area declared for demining in Kharkiv region, which is 392.1 hectares, abandoned munitions have been found. The cost of clearing such areas will be lower compared to plots where mines or unexploded ordnance are detected.

It is worth noting that Ukrainian agrarians can submit applications for demining agricultural lands under the state compensation program. A budget of one billion hryvnias has been allocated for these purposes. Applications are accepted through the State Agrarian Register. The first participant in this year’s program was a farm from Berezneguvatoye in Mykolaiv region. This area has suffered significant shelling from Russian forces. The mentioned farm plans to clear 15 plots of land with a total area of 90.8 hectares.

According to the director of the Center for Humanitarian Demining, Volodymyr Baida, in 2023, the Center processed applications from 195 farmers for demining agricultural lands. Agreements have already been signed with 47 applicants to clear over 9,500 hectares. The first plot of 500 hectares has been cleared as part of this program. He added that this year it is planned to significantly increase the amount of land cleared with the help of private operators.

The issue of demining Ukrainian fields is being addressed globally. For example, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) identifies the demining of Ukraine's agricultural lands as a key financial topic that it intends to support and develop in the coming years. As noted by EBRD board member Artem Shevalov, it is currently not just about financing agrarians, but also companies engaged in demining. The bank is ready to finance these initiatives as it has the financial resources. Artem Shevalov noted that the institution supports Ukrainian agricultural companies, both directly large agricultural corporations and through Ukrainian partner banks for small farmers.

In turn, for example, recently representatives of the Canadian government emphasized that the country will allocate $11.7 million for demining operations in Ukraine, as well as direct $1.5 million to a Cybersecurity Support Project to provide the essential services, equipment, and training that Ukraine desperately needs to combat malicious cyber activities. It is worth noting that since the beginning of the full-scale aggression from Russia, Canada has supported the Ukrainian people. The country has already provided Ukraine with various forms of assistance totaling about $14.5 billion, of which nearly $3.5 billion is military support. And this assistance continues.

By the way, Ukraine has already cleared the first plot of agricultural land at the state's expense - the demining operator has cleared the first area within the state compensation demining program for agricultural land. This concerns lands with a total area of 487 hectares in the Kyiv region, which belong to the Institute of Potato Growing of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine. The demining carried out by the UDS operator lasted from October to the end of December last year.

A team of 78 sappers and 5 paramedics worked on the demining of the land. Demining machines were also involved in the work. During the operations, the sappers discovered remnants of small artillery shells and ammunition from hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers. During the clearance of the territory, the operator's specialists removed 623 kg of war remnants – fragments of ammunition and other materials. The cost of demining the area amounted to 15 million UAH – which is 55% less than the expected cost calculated for the procurement. Five operators competed in the auction for the right to de-mine the area, reducing the cost of demining by 17 million UAH. Ultimately, the cost of clearing one hectare of land was 30,800 UAH. The Center for Humanitarian Demining signed 47 agreements with operators for the clearance of more than 9,500 hectares of agricultural land.

It should be noted that the certification of demining operators has accelerated more than twofold. Last year, their number increased from 28 to 73, and currently, there are already 80.