ASA «ASTRA», as a partner, took an active part in the First Eastern Ukrainian Field Day, held at the HarvEast enterprise. As part of this event, on June 14 a modern irrigation system was officially launched at a farming operation near Mariupol — the first of its kind in Donetsk region.
This equipment will provide optimal conditions for growing elite seed material. Investment in the project amounted to around one million dollars. It’s worth noting that ASA «ASTRA» supplied the HarvEast agroholding with the Valley irrigation system.
The irrigation complex from the leading American manufacturer Valley makes it possible to irrigate an area of around 400 ha. It consists of a fixed center-pivot unit and a versatile linear-move sprinkler unit. Water is supplied to them via a pipeline system. Using this new equipment will save 50% on water resources and boost yields of sunflower hybrids and other crops.
The official opening drew a lot of visitors and speakers.
«HarvEast didn’t invest in ‘hardware’, but in the future of Ukraine’s eastern region. These are long-term capital investments. They show that we believe in the development of agribusiness here and are investing in this direction. The irrigation system will make it possible to produce elite corn, wheat, and other seeds adapted to local conditions. This seed material will make it possible to raise yields in areas of difficult farming — where water is scarce,» said HarvEast CEO Dmytro Skorniakov.
According to our company’s head of Valley system projects, Valentyn Balytskyi, negotiations on installing irrigation systems with HarvEast’s management began a year ago. “We knew right away that the agroholding was planning to introduce irrigation technology for growing seed material, – notes Valentyn Balytskyi. – First we looked at the existing pumping stations, left over from Soviet times. I was surprised that it had survived in perfect condition. Then we started working on designing the machines. When we worked on the project, we primarily took economic factors into account, so we chose machines that cover the largest possible areas”.
Today there are 10 brands on the Ukrainian irrigation-system market. According to Valley’s regional representative, Serhii Melnychenko, Valley irrigation systems stand apart from their equivalents through time-tested quality. Among the equipment’s strengths are engineering support, the machine’s own structure, and the manufacture of all spare parts in the USA. “Valley’s global market share is 50%, which means every second irrigation system in the world is a machine from the Valley brand, – noted Serhii Melnychenko.
A representative from HarvEast and a local government official ceremonially turned the valve and started up the Valley irrigation system!
It was a real pleasure for us to attend an event organized by one of Ukraine’s largest agroholdings – HarvEast.
