Industry of Ukraine

Ukraine’s present-day economy was developed as an integral part of larger economy of the former Soviet Union. While receiving a smaller share (16% in 1980s) of the USSR’s investment funds and producing a greater proportion of goods with a lower set price, Ukraine was still able to produce a larger share of total output in the industrial (17%) and especially the agricultural (21%) sectors of the Soviet economy. In effect, a centrally directed transfer of wealth from Ukraine amounting to 20% of its national income helped to finance economic development in other parts of the Soviet Union, especially Russia and Kazakhstan.

Ukraine has extremely rich mineral resources in high concentrations and close to each other. Rich iron ore reserves located near Kryvy Rih, Kremenchuk, Bilozerka, Mariupol, and Kerch form the basis of Ukraine’s large iron and steel industry. One of the richest areas of manganese-bearing ores in the world is located near Nikopol. Bituminous and anthracite coal used for coke are mined in the Donetsk Coal Basin (commonly called Donbas).

Energy for thermal power stations is ob­tained using the large reserves of brown coal in the Dnipro basin (north of Kryvy Rih) and the bitumi­nous coal deposits of the Lviv-Volhynian Basin north of Lviv.

The 3 major natural-gas and petroleum producing areas in Ukraine are the Subcarpathian region, the Dnipro-Donets region and the Crimean region. In the 1960s, the extraction of natural gas in Ukraine accounted for one-third of the USSR’s total output. However, both gas and oil productions declined after 1975, which made Ukraine an importer of fuels today.

Ukraine also has important deposits of titanium, bauxite and mercury ores. A large deposit of ozokerite (a natural paraffin wax) is near the city of Boryslav. There are large deposits of potassium salt in Subcarpathia and rock salt in the Donetsk Coal basin. Some phosphorites and natural sulfur are also found in Ukraine.

In many places of the country there are health spas famous for their mineral springs, and in addition, spas near the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov specialise in mud baths.

Ukraine is a highly industrialized country. The industrial heartland of the country is the Donetsk Coal Basin. It is the most densely populated and highly industrialised region of the country and one of the world’s major metallurgical and heavy indus­try complexes. The basin has large iron and steelworks, and plants that produce mining equipment, other types of heavy machinery and a variety of Chemicals.

Ukraine has a major ferrous-metals industry, and it rivals China as the fourth largest steel producer in the world. Another important branch of the economy is mining. Its main products are coal, natural gas and iron ore. The most prominent manufactured goods include metallurgical equipment, diesel locomo­tives, tractors and TV sets. Ukraine also has well-developed chemical and food industries. There are more than 50 plants which produce a wide range of agricultural equipment. Machine-tool and instru­ment-manufacturing industries are also being developed. The growing importance of consumer goods is reflected in the increasing output of cameras, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. Some of the principal products of light industry are textiles, ready-made clothes and shoes. Ukraine also has a well-developed transportation system.

Owing partly to rich soils and a favourable climate, Ukraine’s crop production is highly developed. Its grain and potato output almost rivals that of France, and our country is the world’s largest producer of sugar beets. Ukraine’s livestock sector lags behind the crop sector, but its total output is still consider­ably larger than those of most European countries.

The chernozem (black) soils of the forest-steppe zone are among the world’s more productive farmlands and are exceptionally good for wheat and sugar beet. Besides wheat, Ukraine produces such grains as barley (mostly for animal feed), buckwheat and rice. Other crops include potatoes, vegetables, me­lons, berries, fruit, nuts and grapes. Ukraine’s most important industrial crop, sugar beet, is concentrated in the forest-steppe zone. Truck farming or market gardening is particularly developed on the outskirts of large cities like Kyiv, Kharkiv, and others.

Cattle and pigs are raised throughout Ukraine, while chicken, geese and turkey are kept for meat and egg production. There are many large-scale broiler and egg-laying farms close to big cities. Bees are kept in all parts of Ukraine for honey and wax. Though the collective and state farms remain in the country, the declared intent of the Ukrainian government is to bring about a gradual privatization of farming, but it is a difficult and costly process.

The main fishing grounds are the Black Sea estuaries and the Sea of Azov, though the latter is heavily polluted by chemical fertilizers and pesticides. All the main rivers are full of fish but they suffer from pollution too.

Task 4.

Find in the text English equivalents to the following Ukrainian words and word combinations:

невід’ємна частина, фінансувати економічний розвиток, мінеральні ресурси, залізна руда, марганець, вугілля, кокс, нафта, добування природного газу, ртуть, віск, мінеральні джерела, курорт з мінеральними водами, густо заселений регіон, металургійне обладнання, легка промисловість, взуття, цукровий буряк, пшениця, гречка, страждати від забруднення.

Task 5.

Translate the following words and word combinations into Ukrainian:

an integral part of larger economy, investment funds, national income, iron ore reserves, the richest areas of manganese-bearing ores, bituminous and anthracite coal, thermal power stations, an importer of fuels, rock salt, health spas famous for their mineral springs, mud baths, industrial heartland of the country, steelworks and plants, mining, agricultural equipment, growing importance, rich soils and a favourable climate, estuaries.

Task 6.

Match the following English words in column A with their Ukrainian equivalents from column B:

A	B
1. potatoes	a) ячмінь
2. barley	b) виноград
3. vegetables	c) горіхи
4. nuts	d) диня
5. buckwheat	e) ягоди
6. me­lons	f) картопля
7. grapes	g) гречка
8. berries	h) овочі

Task 7.

Find the odd word in each line:

1. rice, melon, buckwheat, barley;

2. mining, agriculture, fishing, diving;

3. coal, sugar beet, natural gas, iron ore.

Task 8.	Translate the following sentences into English:
1. Україна має багаті мінеральні ресурси, розвинені легку та харчову промисловості.
2. В Україні є декілька промислових центрів, які знаходяться поруч один від одного.
3. На сьогодні Україна змушена купувати паливо, хоча раніше вона була країною-експортером.
4. В Україні є декілька курортів з мінеральними джерелами, відомими у всьому світі.
5. В країні розвинені такі галузі промисловості, як текстильна, металургійна, харчова.
6. Україна може конкурувати з багатьма країнами стосовно промисловості чорних металів.
7. Україна виготовляє та експортує обладнання для хімічної, сільськогосподарської та легкої промисловості.
8. Сільськогосподарський сектор вирощує гречку, буряк, ячмінь, ягоди, фрукти, овочі та горіхи.

Task 9.

Fill in the blanks with the words given below:

a) business, b) mineral, c) deposits, d) steel, e) space,

f) industry, g) energy, h) coal, i) rich, j) locomotives

Ukraine is relatively 1) _______ in natural resources, particularly mineral 2) _______. Although oil reserves in the country are largely exhausted, it has other important 3) _______ sources, such as 4) _______, natural gas, hydroelectricity and nuclear fuel raw materials.

Ukraine has a major ferrous metal 5) _______, producing cast iron, steel and pipes. As of 2005, Ukraine was the world’s seventh largest 6) _______ producer. Another important branch is country’s chemical industry producing coke, 7) _______ fertilizers and sulfuric acid. Manufactured goods include metallurgical equipment, diesel 8) _______, tractors, automobiles, The country possesses a massive high-tech industrial base, including much of the former USSR’s electronics, arms industry and 9) _______ program. However, these fields are state-owned and underdeveloped in terms of 10) _______ management.

Task 10.

Imagine you are visiting the international students’ campus and your foreign friends ask you to tell them about the industrial development of Ukraine. Don’t forget to mention such aspects as:

Ø present-day economy;

Ø mineral resources;

Ø health spas;

Ø main industries;

Ø agricultural sector.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-16