The first-ever concession project in Ukraine, structured in line with best international practise, was signed today. The consortium of RISOIL, Ukraine’s leading stevedoring and agro-industrial company, and the Georgian Industrial Group, the largest industrial holding in Georgia, was awarded a 30-year concession for the seaport of Kherson following an open international tender.  A precondition for this agreement was the introduction of a concession law in Ukraine in 2019 that regulates the concessional use of state and communal property and increases its efficiency, as the legal framework for the project.  The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) provided technical assistance for the preparation of this law. Together with the government of Ukraine and the International Finance Corporation  (IFC), the Bank helped organise the concessional tender and brought the project to a commercial close, making it the first-ever public-private partnership in Ukraine. The concessionaire will be responsible for the operation and modernisation of the seaport over the 30-year period and will invest around US$ 15 million in port facilities and supporting infrastructure by 2030. It will have to increase…