We would remind you that in March 2016 the Ambassador of Canada Roman Waschuk visited the company’s transshipment terminal and NIBULON shipbuilding and repair yard, where NIBULON’s General Director held an excursion for him, for the first time. The Ambassador highly appreciated the company’s achievements not only across Ukraine, but also throughout the world.
During the meeting, the representatives of the diplomatic mission familiarized themselves with NIBULON’s facilities in Mykolaiv and discussed the directions of prospective cooperation between Canada and Ukraine.
At first, the guests visited NIBULON shipbuilding and repair yard. Andrii Volik, NIBULON’s deputy general director of fleet construction, fleet operation and navigation safety, held an excursion there. The guests were told about the implementation of the shipbuilding program which is planned for three years ahead, as well as about the reconstruction of the shipyard. The Canadian representatives were impressed and they continued to familiarize themselves with the production facilities of the shipyard. The guests visited the newly built workshops; they saw the processes of metal processing, manufacturing of parts, as well as the assembly of sections of future shipbuilding orders.
The guests walked along the building berth where the launching gear is being reconstructed, as well as saw the company’s fleet, in particular Mykolaivets high-capacity vessel which dredges Ukrainian rivers and makes them navigable. But NIBULON MAX, a140-m floating crane which is actively being built, impressed them the most. The vessel is the longest one in the shipyard’s history and the longest crane vessel of “river-sea” class over the last 25 years of independence.
The excursion was continued at the transshipment terminal for shipment of grain and oilseeds. The guests were shown the terminal’s modern three-story laboratory and administrative building. The company’s specialists demonstrated the work of high-capacity imported equipment which enables them to measure quality and to conduct scientific research on grain and NIBULON’s own processed products. They also told about NIBULON’s achievements in purchase system, grain processing, shipment on river fleet, etc.
After the excursion the guests met with Oleksiy Vadaturskyy. NIBULON’s General Director and the Canadian delegation recollected the successful cooperation between Canada and Ukraine which goes back to 2003. At that time, Export Development Canada and the State Export-Import Bank of Ukraine allocated USD 1.1 million to construct one of two domes (grain storages) at Mykolaiv transshipment terminal according to a modern French technology under the guidance of Canadian firm Domexpert Inc. Canada also produced a casing of one dome, and Spain produced another one. These domes are still the world’s largest facilities to store grain.
Oleksiy Vadaturskyy also told the guests about the company’s history, periods of numerous obstacles the company should have overcome in order to develop itself, to attain new goals, to create new jobs for Ukrainians, developing the economy and strengthening Ukraine.
“We started building vessels in 2009. In 2014, we established NIBULON shipbuilding and repair yard. Ten years ago I could not think that I would be involved in shipbuilding, and today NIBULON’s fleet consists of 72 vessels, and there are many more vessels ahead. There are many people who want to work at our facilities. 9,000 and 1,600 specialists respectively are next in turn to get a job at our shipbuilding yard and at NIBULON’s shipping company”, said Oleksiy Vadaturskyy.  
In turn, Adam Barbolet expressed his admiration for NIBULON’s activities, its actual achievements in agriculture and in the development of river navigation and said,
“I am impressed by the integrated companies whose work is based on a chain principle. And I thought that NIBULON was an example of such an enterprise. But now I see that you took this a step further. You have not only integrated internal process, you even build your own vessels”.  
Michael Yurkovich added,
“I am very interested in your fleet, especially in the ice class vessels. We have vessels, but they do not operate during freezing period. And that’s a problem. I am sure that many enterprises in Canada would like to have such vessels in their fleets and we would like to cooperate with you in this direction”.
The General Director noted that the company was always open to negotiations and new partners. He invited representatives of the Embassy and Canadian business to get acquainted with NIBULON closer, to visit the facilities, to hold meetings in order to share their experience, etc.  According to Oleksiy Vadaturskyy, the international Forum TRANS EXPO ODESA-MYKOLAIV 2019, within which a large-scale exhibition “Shipbuilding and Water Transport-2019” will be held, is a good opportunity to establish relations between the countries. The events will take place in Mykolaiv on September 20-21. We are also looking forward to seeing the Canadian guests there. We expect that more than 100 foreign companies will participate this year.
At the end of the meeting, the representatives of the Embassy of Canada expressed their gratitude to Oleksiy Vadaturskyy for organizing their visit to NIBULON and noted that it was a great privilege for them to personally see the company’s facilities, the process of building vessels from the inside, and to communicate personally with the General Director.