The project sponsor is the Guta family (the “Sponsors”), who founded Mriya in 1992 and control it till this day. The head of the Guta family, Ivan Guta, a well-respected Ukrainian businessman, and his wife, Klaudia Guta, Ivan and Klaudia Guta established Mriya, after having worked for eight years at a state farm. In 2002, Andriy and Mykola Guta, the sons of the founders, joined the family business after completing their education in Ukraine and abroad. Following a private placement on the Entry Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in 2008, the Sponsors collectively own 80% of Mriya’s Cyprus-based holding company that fully controls all of Mriya’s Ukraine-based operating companies, with the remaining owned by institutional investors.

IFC’s proposed investment is a US$60 million corporate facility which will be used to finance procurement of agricultural inputs to produce grains and other crops. Additionally, IFC will issue new three-year US$5 million A loan to improve Mriya’s energy efficiencies and waste management.

65.0 million (USD)

Product Line	IFC Investment (million USD)
Risk Management
Guarantee
Loan	65.0
Equity

* These investment figures are indicative

The project is located in the Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, Lviv and Khmelnitsky regions, which are among the poorest, primarily agricultural, regions of Ukraine.

IFC''s financing will contribute to the development of a large-scale modern farming operation which will improve land productivity and have a demonstration impact on other neighboring farms. Mriya''s land and operations are located in Western Ukraine in the Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, Chernivtsi and Khmelnitsky regions. These four regions are amongst the poorest regions in the country. Development impact of the project will be as follows:
Employment: Mriya''s investment program and the additional permanent and seasonal employment positions created by Mriya will make a significant contribution to the emergence of economic opportunities for the population in the regions that Mriya operates in. In addition to creating new jobs, Mriya is setting new employment standards in the region by providing benefits to its farm workers such food and housing.
Environmental and Social Standards: As part of the Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP), Mriya will implement an ESMS to further enhance its environmental and social management.
Private Sector Development: Mriya sells its products to a diversified base of final customers and traders. Among them, there currently are about 50 MSME distributors of mainly potatoes and corn, for final sales on the domestic market and 110 trasporters to deliver the grains and crops to the port for export.

Source of financing: The IFC facility will allow Mriya to secure part of its large and growing financing needs at the time when available local financing is scarce;
Long-term partnership: Mriya has made a strategic decision to build relationships with steady and long-term financiers such as IFC and EBRD that have extensive emerging markets experience and will stay the course alongside their partners; By partnering with IFC, the Company will be able to enhance its risk profile. Mriya is expected to benefit from its on-going relationship with IFC during a future listing on a major stock exchange.

The Project will be developed within long-established agriculture and processing sites, as such, there will be no conversion of natural/critical habitats leading to biodiversity loss; land used for the project is current agricultural and/or industrial land with no presence of indigenous people or prior cultural asset history. Therefore, PS5, PS6, PS7 and PS8 are not applicable to this project. Screening, early identification, assessment and mitigation/ prevention of potential impacts and risks associated with further expansion of agricultural and industrial activities planning in the framework of this Project are implemented by Mriya through established and enforced environmental, occupational health and safety and social management system (ESMS). Corrective measures required of the client are addressed in the attached Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP).

This is a category B project according to IFC’s Environmental and Social Sustainability Policy because the Project will generate limited and site-specific E&S impacts that can be avoided or mitigated by adhering to generally recognized performance standards, guidelines or design criteria. The Project is designed to manage and reduce social and environmental risks and impacts in the Companies’ operations in compliance with IFC Performance Standards, national regulations, and WBG General Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Guidelines and EHS Guidelines for Annual Crop Production and Sugar Manufacturing.

The key environmental and social issues related to this proposed project related to the agricultural operations and processing activities are the following: (i) the upgrade and implementation of a corporate environmental, OHS, and social management system in compliance with PS1, (ii) labour and working conditions, including occupational health and safety considerations, (iii) pollution prevention due to effluent management and pesticide use, and (iv) potentially affected community grievance mechanisms.