Land in Mykolaiv region remains one of the cheapest for agribusiness

A field in the Mykolaiv region. Archival photo: NikVesti

Despite fertile soils, agricultural land in Mykolaiv region remains one of the cheapest in Ukraine. In June, the price per hectare was almost 35,000 hryvnias, while in the western regions it reached more than 130,000 hryvnias.

This is evidenced by the data of the analytical platform «Opendatabot», NikVesti.

In the Zakarpattia region, a hectare of agricultural land is sold for an average of over 152 thousand hryvnias. In Ivano-Frankivsk — over 149 thousand hryvnias, and in Lviv — over 137 thousand hryvnias.

Meanwhile, in the frontline regions, such as Kherson, Zaporizhzhia or Mykolaiv, prices are at the level of 34-35 thousand hryvnias. Even in the neighbouring Odesa region, the cost of land is higher — almost 44 thousand hryvnias.

The cost of agricultural land by region. Infographic: Opendatabot

According to analysts, several factors affect the price, Hromadske writes.

Firstly, the war caused the total area of arable land to shrink by about 20%. This automatically increased demand, especially in safer regions.

Secondly, last year's drought sharply increased vegetable prices, and many farmers decided to refocus on vegetable production. To expand production, they began to actively buy land.

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Finally, for Ukrainians, land is not just a business, but a part of their mentality: it is perceived as a reliable asset and a family value that can be passed on to their children.

According to Serhii Nechyporuk, CEO of «Agrotrade», since the launch of the land reform in 2021, the average value of agricultural land has increased by 30-50%.

«The dynamics of land value growth in the country on average over the period of the land reform is 30-50%, while in the border regions of eastern Ukraine, due to military risks, the dynamics is limited to the upper limit of $ 1000-1500 per hectare, and in the western regions it reaches $ 2500-3000 per hectare,» said Serhii Nechyporuk.

In January-April this year, local budgets of Mykolaiv region received over 329 million hryvnias from land tax and rent for land use.