Russian state to compensate Pustomyty trader for 2,107 tonnes of sunflower seeds

The Commercial Court of Luhansk Oblast has ruled that the Russian Ministry of Justice must pay 65.36 million hryvnia, approximately $1.6 million, to a private firm for sunflower seeds lost during the occupation of Svatove.

The debt stems from a purchase made in October 2021. Oliiar, a company registered in Pustomyty, Lviv Oblast, agreed to buy 4,700 tonnes of sunflower seeds from the 2021 harvest. The seller was Prydniprovske Agrarian Company LLC. Oliiar arranged for Svatove-Ahro LLC to store the crop in a Svatove warehouse. By February 24, 2022, the facility had delivered 2,592 tonnes to Oliiar. That left 2,107 tonnes still in storage when the invasion began.

Russian armed groups subsequently seized the warehouse premises. Oliiar never recovered the remaining portion of its purchase. The court found that Oliiar provided conclusive evidence that the loss was a direct result of Russia's armed aggression. An expert valuation determined the compensation amount.

Iryna Zalizna is listed as the founder of Oliiar, and Iryna Podoba serves as its director. The ruling aligns with a previous decision by the same court. That earlier order required Russia to pay 51.67 million hryvnia, or about $1.25 million, to Trading House Agrokhim LLC for property lost in Svatove and Kakhovka.

The current decision places the financial burden for the missing seeds directly on the Russian state. The court identified the Ministry of Justice as the representative for the defendant in the case.