EQUIPMENT DIRECT JOINS U.S.-UKRAINE BUSINESS COUNCIL (USUBC)
Supplying agricultural equipment, spare parts, from the United States to Ukraine

U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), Wash, D.C., Thu, June 24, 2010

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Equipment Direct, Arcola, Illinois and Kyiv, Ukraine, a company selling new agricultural equipment, spare parts and used machinery in the U.S., Ukraine and around the world, has been approved for membership in the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC), the USUBC executive committee announced today on behalf of the entire USUBC membership of over 120 companies and organizations who have business operations, investments or other development programs in Ukraine.

Equipment Direct, is a sister company of an American company, Farm Pride, Arthur, Illinois, that has 6 Case New Holland (CNH) dealerships in the U.S.
Farm Pride/Equipment Direct has more than thirty years experience in the supply of agricultural equipment worldwide, including: Puerto Rico, Brazil, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, and Kazakhstan.

SALES, SERVICE AND SPARE PARTS IN UKRAINE
Equipment Direct provides sales, service, and spare parts for agricultural equipment throughout all the territory of Ukraine. Equipment Direct supplies parts and provides service that meet international standards. They have been active on-the-ground in Ukraine since 2002. In 2003 they pioneered in the use of the US Export-Import Bank to provide five year financing for used equipment in Ukraine.

In 2010 Equipment Direct introduced the first bolt together model of J & M Auger Wagons (Hector, Minnesota) to Ukraine, brought the first US produced Loftness silo bagging and unloading machines to Ukraine, and introduced the temporary grain storage circles made by Union Iron Works.

They have operations in Kiev, Odessa and Dnipropetrovsk.When one visits their facility, located in the villages of Kholodnaya Balka, (Odesa) and Dnipropetrovsk, one can see a large number of used and new equipment (tractors, seeders, discs, cultivators, etc.) of such famous brands as CASE, New Holland, John Deere, Great Plains Manufacturing, Inc., (Salina, Kansas), Buhler-Versatile tractors, and Valmont irrigation systems (Valley, Nebraska).

WILMER OTTO, PRESIDENT AND YURIY ALATORTSEV, CEO
Wilmer Otto is president and founder of Farm Pride/Equipment Direct in Illinois. Yuriy Alatortsev is the CEO of Equipment Direct in Kyiv.  "I have known Wilmer and Yuriy for several years.  They are experienced in the Ukrainian marketplace and know first hand how difficult it is to find adequate financing for agricultural equipment buyers," said Morgan Williams, director, government affairs, Washington office, for the SigmaBleyzer private equity investment management group who serves as president of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council (USUBC).  

Williams said, "Wilmer and Yuriy have worked to create and implement unique and effective financing programs. The latter part of 2008, all of 2009, and the beginning of 2010 has been very difficult for companies like Equipment Direct as domestic and international financing for the purchase of critical agricultural equipment for Ukraine has all but dried up.  Wilmer and Yuriy have both told me business is now looking up and they are moving forward once again to getting modern agricultural equipment moving to Ukraine. They know how much difference such equipment can make in a market starved for new machinery."

UP-TO-DATE GRAIN STORAGE SOLUTIONS
Equipment Direct CEO Yuri Alatortsev said recently at a meeting in Kyiv, "I would add that Equipment Direct also supplies up-to-date grain storage solutions for medium and large farming operations including temporary storage tent rings from 5,000 MT up to 50,000 MT and silo bag solutions so popular globally but just beginning to raise the interest in Ukraine." " We also provide containerizing, shipping, and custom clearing services for Ukraine companies who have purchased goods from other vendors," added Wilmer Otto, President.

"USUBC is pleased to have Equipment Direct as a new member and to have the opportunity to work closely with Wilmer and Yuriy in the months ahead on the trade financing issue. Additional sources of financing are needed to get exports moving from the USA to Ukraine which is a win-win for both countries," Williams stated.  

INFORMATION: Additional information about Equipment Direct can be found at http://www.eqdirectusa.com/en/index.html.  CONTACTS: President and Founder Wilmer Otto; w.otto (at) eqdirectusa.com; or CEO Yuriy Alatortsev: y.alatortsev (at) eqdirectusa.com.

USUBC MEMBERSHIP NOW OVER 120 AND STILL GROWING
One-Hundred Twenty Members, June 2010, Membership in January of 2007 was 22. 
The complete list of USUBC members can be found at: http://www.usubc.org/members.php.

SENIOR ADVISORS TO USUBC- 2010
[1]  Anders Aslund, Senior Fellow
Peterson Institute for International Economics, Washington, D.C.
 
[2]  Ariel Cohen, Ph.D, Senior Research Fellow
Allison Center for International Studies,
Davis Institute for International Studies,
The Heritage Foundation, Washington, D.C.
 
[3]  Keith Crane, Senior Economist
Rand Corporation, Washington, D.C.

[4]  James Greene, President
Effective Engagement Strategies, LLC, Washington, D.C.
Former Head, NATO Liaison Office Ukraine

[5]  Anatoliy Kinakh, Head
League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Ukraine
Member of Parliament of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine

[6]  David Kramer, Senior Transatlantic Fellow
The German Marshall Fund of the United States
Washington, D.C.
 
[7]  Leonid Kozachenko, President
Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation (UAC), Kyiv, Ukraine

[8]  William Green Miller, Senior Policy Scholar
Woodrow Wilson Center,  Washington, D.C.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine

[9]  Steven Pifer, Senior Fellow
The Brookings Institution
Senior Advisor, Russia & Eurasia Program, CSIS, Washington, D.C.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine
 
[10]  Dr. Edilberto Segura, Partner, Chief Economist
SigmaBleyzer Private Equity Investment Group
Chair of the Advisory Board of The Bleyzer Foundation, Kyiv, Ukraine
 
[11]  Keith Smith, Senior Associate
Europe Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Former U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania, Washington, D.C.  

[12]  William B. Taylor, Jr., Vice President, Peace & Stability Operations
United States Institute of Peace, Washington, D.C.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine

[13]  Damon Wilson, Vice President
Atlantic Council of the United States, Washington, D.C.

[14] James Wilson, Director
EU Ukraine Business Council (EUUBC), Brussels, Belgium

USUBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD
OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS
For Year 2010 (http://www.usubc.org/excommittee.php)

[1]  Margarita Karpenko, Managing Partner
DLA Piper Ukraine LLC, Kyiv, Ukraine

[2]  Michael E. Kirst, Regional Vice President
Central/Eastern Europe and Russia
Westinghouse Electric Company, Brussels, Belgium

[3]  John R. Miller, Director,
International Business Development, Europe, Israel, Sub-Sahara
Raytheon International, Inc., Arlington, VA

[4]  Dr. Irina Paliashvili, President and Senior Counsel
RULG-Ukrainian Legal Group, P.A., Washington, D.C./Kyiv, Ukraine

[5]  Andrew A. Pidgirsky, Chairman, Board of Governors,
Ukrainian American Bar Association (UABA), Houston, TX

[6]  Samir B. Sahgal, Director, International Operations
Washington, D.C. Operations, The Boeing Company, Arlington, VA
            Treasurer, USUBC

[7] Diana Sedney
Manager, International Government Relations
Policy, Government and Public Affairs, Chevron Government Affairs
Chevron, Washington, D.C.

[8] John F. Steele, Director, International Government Affairs
Eli Lilly and Company, Washington, D.C.

[9] Vanessa Stiffler-Claus, Director, International Affairs
John Deere Public Affairs Worldwide, John Deere, Washington, D.C.

[10]  Patrick H. Sweet, President
Sweet Analysis Services, Inc. (SASI), Alexandria, VA

[11]  E. Morgan Williams, Director, Government Affairs, Washington Office
SigmaBleyzer Private Equity Investment Group, Washington, D.C.
           Chairman, Executive Committee, USUBC, President/CEO, USUBC

[12]  Van A. Yeutter, Vice President, Corporate Affairs
Cargill, Washington, D.C.

[13]  Jack I. Heller, Attorney at Law
Heller & Rosenblatt, Washington, D.C.
           Legal Counsel, USUBC