Ukrinform has published an investigation into the supply of raw materials for Belarusian ceramic tile producers from occupied territories of Ukraine. The investigation was conducted jointly with the initiative of former Belarusian security officers BELPOL.
The report details a scheme for supplying kaolin from the Bila Balka deposit in the Volnovakha district to Belarusian enterprises Keramin and Berezastroimaterialy. Supplies were handled by Nika Trade Invest LLC, registered in Donetsk. The company also develops the deposits using seized assets of Ukrainian enterprises Donbasnerudprom and Donbaskeramika.
Nika Trade Invest acts as the seller and consignor. The formal buyer is Nika LLC, registered in Rostov-on-Don. The recipient is Keramin OJSC. Kaolin is transported by rail from Khartsyzk and Volnovakha to Russia and then to Belarus, to the Minsk-South station. The investigation includes documents confirming shipments of thousands of tonnes of raw materials. Berezastroimaterialy receives supplies under a similar scheme, though without the Rostov-based Nika. According to BELPOL estimates, the volume of supplies exceeds 600 million Russian roubles (about $7.5 million), representing only the portion that could be verified.
The investigation also cites another document indicating that as early as 2023 Belarusian officials began negotiations with Russia over leasing deposits near Druzhkivka in the Donetsk region to Keramin. These deposits belong to the Ukrainian company Vesco and at the time of negotiations remained under Ukrainian control. They remain under Ukrainian control now.
In a letter from the Ministry of Architecture and Construction sent to Alyaksandr Lukashenka in 2024, it is stated that following discussions with the Russian side, “consideration of the issue was deemed premature due to the location of the property complex in territory not under control”.
The ministry then instructed that a new package of documents be prepared and that a renewed request for the transfer of the deposit be submitted. However, consultations with the Territorial Development Fund resulted in a similar response: in the event of a formal request, it would receive a negative reply “for reasons similar to those for the refusal received in 2023”.
Belarusian officials did not stop there. In May 2024, a request was sent to the head of the Territorial Development Fund to arrange a meeting. The fund declined, this time noting that “there is heightened interest from Russian companies” in the asset and that it would be transferred to management “through an open competition”.
Following this, Minsk decided to prepare an appeal at the government level. In a letter sent to Lukashenka, it is stated that efforts to reach agreements will continue under the Ministry of Architecture and Construction.
