Workers of Zhydachiv paper mill accuse owner of bringing mill to a halt in letter to premier

The workers of OJSC Zhydachiv paper mill (Lviv region) and residents of Zhydachiv have accused the owner of the company of bringing it to a halt and taking actions aimed at totally destroying the only newsprint producer in Ukraine.

The accusations are made in an appeal of the mill's workers and Zhydachiv residents sent to Ukrainian Premier Mykola Azarov to settle the situation and take measures to resume production of newsprint and pulp at the mill. The letter was forwarded to Interfax-Ukraine.

The appeal says that the mill, which recently was one of the top-three largest companies in the sector, now has debts worth millions of hryvnias, does not have circulating funds, as they were drained by the leadership of Osnova-Papir (the managing company), is facing court orders on debt collection, has delayed wages for two months (they were paid only after the intervention of the Ukrainian president during his visit to Lviv on May 27), and is on the verge of bankruptcy.