Austrian company with Russian shareholders accused of illegal mining in Ukraine

An Austrian company with Russian shareholders has been stopped from mining in Ukraine by the Ukraine Security Service (SBU).

The Austrian company, in which a Russian oligarch allegedly owns shares, cause Ukraine to lose 270 million UAH, after illegally extracting andesite in Zakarpattya, Ukraine, according to the SBU.

According to the investigation, the company  continued production of andesite after the termination of the relevant state licenses, thus working illegally and under no state control.

The company also reportedly sold raw materials to local enterprises with no state approval. More than 113 thousand cubic meters of andesite was reportedly extracted illegally.

Within the scope of criminal proceedings law enforcers gathered sufficient evidence to hold the persons responsible for the crime liable.

The company’s director was charged under Part. Article 240, part 4 (violation of the rules of environmental protection or use of natural resources, illegal extraction of brown coal) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Documentation of the equipment was carried out by the SBU in Transcarpathian region together with the National Police under the procedural head of the SpecialiSed Environmental Prosecutor’s Office.

The news follows the Defence of Ukraine calling out an Italian steel-plant company for its collaboration with Russia, in supplying equipment allegedly destined to produce nuclear submarines and tank armour.

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