Ukraine’s Economy

Industry is the most important area of Ukraine’s economy. In the current structure of Ukraine’s industry a great proportion is occupied by heavy industry, especially the steel, machine building and coal industries. The coal industry is concentrated in two basins: Donetsk and Lviv-Volyn. The oil and gas industries are located in the Subcarpathian and Left-Bank regions, but the extraction of oil and natural gas is insufficient to satisfy the country’s needs.

Ukraine has a strong power generation industry. Large thermal and hydroelectric stations have been built. There are 10 nuclear power plants in Ukraine.

The metallurgical industry includes the ferrous and non-ferrous industries. Metallurgical plants are spread through three regions – the Donbas, Dnieper and Azov Coast regions.

The machine-building industry is presently the largest branch of industry. Instrument-making is one of the most scattered branches. A plant in Sumy produces such diverse instruments as electron microscopes and cinecameras. An important place is occupied by heavy machine-building, which provides equipment for metallurgy, power stations and cement plants. A large plant is located in Kramatorsk and is a leading supplier of metallurgical equipment and powerful excavators. Powerful turbines, generators and steam boilers are also produced.

Ship-building is an important branch of industry. Seagoing vessels are built at shipyards located in Mykolaiv, Kherson and Kyiv.

The motor vehicle industry sprung up after the Second World War. Buses are produced in Lviv, passenger cars in Zaporizhia, lorries in Kremenchuk, and both passenger and transport vehicles in Lutsk. Kharkiv has a specialized vehicle engine works. Aeroplanes are built in Kyiv and Kharkiv.

Farm machinery plants turn out nearly all types of soil cultivating, sowing and harvesting machines. The manufacture of tractors and combine harvesters is concentrated in large plants such as Kharkiv tractor works.

The chemical industry includes the production of acids, salts, fertilizers, dyes, detergents, plastics, synthetic fibres, pharmaceuticals and other goods.

The manufacture of building materials is well developed in all of Ukraine’s provinces.

Ukraine’s food industry is located mostly in the Forest-Steppe (sugar), the Steppe (vegetable oils), the South (fruit canning, vine).

There are many textile enterprises in Ukraine: cotton (Kherson, Ternopil), linen (Rivne, Zhytomyr), wool (Chernihiv, Luhansk), silk (Kyiv, Cherkasy). Garment and footwear industries are located in large population centres. China and pottery enterprises have developed in Kharkiv, Sloviansk, in the area of Novohrad-Volynsky.

Exercise 24. Answer the following questions.

1. What are the most important industries in Ukraine’s economy? 2. Where is coal industry concentrated? 3. What kinds of power stations are there in Ukraine? 4. What industries does the metallurgical industry include?

5. Where are electron microscopes produced? 6. Is Ukraine a leading shipbuilder? 7. Where is the motor vehicle industry located? 8. What do you know about Ukrainian aeroplane making? 9. What kinds of machines do farm machinery plants turn out? 10. What are the products of chemical industry?

Exercise 25. Translate into English the following sentences.

1. Україна – розвинена промислова країна. 2. Вугільна про-мисловість – традиційна, промисловість для сходу України. 3. Багато електроенергії виробляється на українських електростанціях. 4. Чорна та кольорова металургія зосереджені на південному сході. 5. Важке машинобудування – це обладнання для металургійних заводів та електростанцій. 6. Україна відома своїм суднобудуванням. 7. Найбільші літаки в світі випускаються на українських авіаційних заводах. 8. Завод по виробництву сільськогосподарських машин знаходиться у Ковелі. 9. Виробництво будівельних матеріалів в Україні постійно збільшується. 10. В нашому регіоні розміщено багато відомих підприємств харчової промисловості.