Some 30 distilleries have been privatized at online auctions since October 2020 for over UAH 1.7 billion, of which UAH 1.05 billion has already been paid by investors to the state budget of Ukraine, the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPF) said on Facebook.

"Today we can say with confidence that the demonopolization of the alcohol industry in Ukraine has taken place! At transparent auctions, 30 distilleries were privatized for over UAH 1.7 billion, of which UAH 1.05 billion has already been paid by investors to the state budget, another UAH 37 million were received as penalties and guarantee fees for refusing the results of the auction," deputy head of the agency Taras Yeleiko said.

According to the SPF, a year ago, Ukraine, together with Belarus, were the only countries in the world with state monopolies on production of alcohol, but the reform in the industry, which started on July 1, 2020, gave a powerful incentive for its development.

The fund recalled that by the end of this year, three auctions should be held for the privatization of alcohol assets – Uzlove (the village of Uzlove and Radekhiv, Lviv region), Trostianets (Trostianets and the village of Severynivka, Vinnytsia region) and Uladivka factories (the village of Uladivka, Vinnytsia region).

As reported, on December 11, 2019, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law abolishing state monopoly in the alcohol production from July 1, 2020, which was adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on December 3, 2019.

The head of Ukrspyrt state enterprise, Serhiy Bleskun, in August 2021 said that investors had already transferred funds for the privatization of 18 objects of Ukrspyrt state enterprise, 15 of them had already signed the acts of acceptance and transfer of property, 12 objects remained under the control of the state enterprise.