The Defense Department
has announced three industrial partnership awards designed to assist
Ukraine in converting its former Soviet military production facilities
into commercial joint ventures. These awards bring the number of joint
ventures in Ukraine to seven.
The projects total
$64.60 million in cash investments. Through the Department of Defense
(DoD) Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program, the U.S. government
will contribute $47.46 million to these projects. The seven U.S. firms
involved will contribute a total of $17.14 million in cash and technology
and licensing valued at over $50 million.
The following Defense
Nuclear Agency contract awards have been announced:
- Approximately
$4.80 million has been awarded to ABB Combustion Engineering,Windsor,
Conn., to form a closed joint stock company with Ukraine's Monolit,located
in Kharkiv, to convert a manufacturer of aircraft, spacecraft and missile
electrical, control and guidance systems into a manufacturer of digital
instrumentation and control systems for nuclear power plants. ABB Combustion
Engineering will contribute technology and licensing valued at $20 million
to the joint venture.
- Approximately
$3.03 million has been provided to Die Casters Incorporated,Wayne, N.J.,
to create a joint venture with Ukraine partner Meridian (formerly Korolev),
Kiev, to convert a million electronic and radar equipment facility into
a factory that manufactures die cast consumer products, for example,automotive
parts and hand tools. The project will upgrade Meridian's diecasting
capability by installing process monitoring and control systems and
remanufactured die casting machines. Die Casters incorporated will contribute$1.07
million to the project.
- Approximately
$2.66 million has been awarded to American Industrial Development (AID)
Corporation, Boston, Mass., for a joint venture with Ukraine's Orizon,
located in Smela, to convert an electronic apparatus and space navigation
equipment plant to a polyvinyl chloride window and door assembly facility.
AID Corporation will contribute $469,979 to the joint venture.
Previous DoD funded
industrial partnerships in the Ukraine created production ventures in
construction and civil engineering, pre-fabricated housing, nuclear
electronic control instrumentation and cellular telephones. The projects
were initiated under a $50 CTR implementing agreement between
the DoD and the Ministry of Machine Building, Military-Industrial Complex
and Conversion of Ukraine.
CTR program
assistance to Ukraine for defense conversion helps reduce the threat
of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; assists Ukraine
in building a peaceful, commercially viable market economy while reducing
its excess military industrial capacity; and promotes opportunities
for U.S. industry's entry into a potentially large market for consumer
goods and services.
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