The Ministry of Energy will start paying off wage debts to miners from December 20

Deputy Energy Minister Maksym Nemchynov said that funds to pay off wage arrears to miners of UAH 1.4 billion would begin to flow to coal enterprises from December 20, Interfax-Ukraine reports.

“According to our calculations, approximately by December 18, we are going to receive funds for a special fund of the state budget, and we will begin transferring these funds to mines, to pay salaries to miners. This will happen somewhere from December 20,” he said at a meeting of the Cabinet.

As the Minister of Finance Serhii Marchenko confirmed, the money would be transferred to the coal enterprises in full UAH 1.4 billion following the law.

On November 17, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a draft law No.4119 on amendments to the state budget of Ukraine for 2020 regarding the implementation of Article 11 of the law on the natural gas market, which provides for the financial recovery of PJSC Ukrnafta by offsetting with NJSC Naftogaz and the state budget.

The funds of UAH 10.3 billion, received by the state budget as a result of the operation, will be used to finance the Fund for Combating COVID-19 (UAH 8.9 billion) and payback salary arrears to miners (UAH 1.4 billion).

Earlier, Deputy Energy Minister Olha Buslavets said that unprofitable mines in Ukraine would be closed for 10 years.