Luhansk Court Sets Russia's Seed Bill at $1.6 Million for Lviv Firm

A court in Luhansk Oblast has ordered Russia to pay Oliiar, a Pustomyty-based company, UAH 65.36 million, about US$1.6 million, for sunflower seeds lost in an occupied storage facility. The Commercial Court of Luhansk Oblast issued the figure in a ruling that names the Russian Ministry of Justice as the party responsible for payment. The valuation rests on an expert assessment of the crop.

Oliiar contracted in October 2021 to buy 4,700 tonnes of sunflower seed from Prydniprovske Agrarian Company LLC and contracted Svatove-Ahro LLC to hold the harvest. The supplier shipped the full amount to a Svatove warehouse. Svatove-Ahro sent 2,592 tonnes onward to Oliiar by 24 February 2022. The remaining 2,107 tonnes stayed in storage. Russian armed groups seized the warehouse after the full-scale invasion began, and Oliiar never recovered that portion.

The court found that Oliiar supplied conclusive evidence tying the loss of the crop to Russia's armed aggression. Oliiar is registered in Pustomyty, Lviv Oblast, with Iryna Zalizna as founder and Iryna Podoba as director.

The same court previously ordered Russia to pay UAH 51.67 million, about US$1.25 million, to Trading House Agrokhim LLC for property lost in Svatove and Kakhovka.

Oliiar's claim covers seed stock held at the Svatove facility as of 24 February 2022.