Far more than ministers: how much do top officials at state-owned enterprises earn?

Far more than ministers: how much do top officials at state-owned enterprises earn? derevynnyk.com
Maria Semenova

The highest average salary among foresters was over 680,000 UAH per month (after taxes)

The salaries of the heads of regional branches of the state-owned enterprise "Forests of Ukraine" turned out to be among the highest in Ukraine. The state spent over 10 million hryvnias annually on the salaries of some of the heads of the enterprise’s branches.

This was reported by OBOZ.UA, citing the officials’ declarations on the NACP website.

Serhiy Dmytrenko, head of the "Eastern Forest Office," declared over 3,195,600 UAH in salary for 2023. He received an additional 101,600 UAH from the "Slobozhansky Forest Office."

The salary of the head of the "Southern Forest Office," Oleksandr Hrytsai, amounted to 6,281,200 UAH in 2025. On a monthly basis, he received an average of about 403,000 UAH net of taxes.

The director of the "Podilsk Forest Office" at SE "Lisy Ukrainy," Vasyl Honchar, declared 9,575,300 UAH in 2025. His average monthly “net” official income was 614,400 UAH.

The head of the "Northern Forest Office" branch, Viacheslav Kychenok, received 10,333,000 UAH in salary for 2025. This equates to about 663,000 UAH per month after tax.

The most expensive for the state is the director of the "Carpathian Forest Office," Ihor Cheban. During 2025, his salary totaled 10,631,500 UAH. Thus, the “net” monthly salary of the official was 682,000 UAH. His wife received 59,000 UAH per month working at the "Podilsk Forestry."

The salary received in 2025 by the general director of SE "Lisy Ukrainy," Yurii Bolokhovets, was somewhat more modest – 8,013,100 UAH. This is about 513,100 UAH per month.

For comparison, OBOZ.UA cites the wage of the general director of "Ukrposhta," Ihor Smiliansky, which is often a subject of public criticism. In 2024, it was less than 600,000 UAH per month, and in 2025 – about 700,000 UAH.

EcoPolitic reported that in 2025 Bolokhovets was taken into custody in a case of illicit enrichment. However, he soon returned to work, and recently the charges were dropped. As reported in the media with reference to the court ruling, the reason was the lack of an audio recording of the court's search permit.

It also became known earlier about the salaries of Ukrainian ministers. In 2025, Oleksii Sobolev, Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture, declared 1,761,700 UAH.

Related
The European Commission has issued recommendations to Ukraine regarding amendments to the draft law on the national public service broadcaster
The European Commission has issued recommendations to Ukraine regarding amendments to the draft law on the national public service broadcaster

The system must be as closely aligned with the European one as possible in order to avoid disruption when they are actually merged in the third phase

This week’s round-up of environmental crimes: deforestation, pollution and poaching
This week’s round-up of environmental crimes: deforestation, pollution and poaching

The failure of forestry officials to fulfil their duties has led to the loss of hundreds of trees

Ukrainians are paying the price for the ‘rubbish’ reform that local authorities have ignored – expert
Ukrainians are paying the price for the ‘rubbish’ reform that local authorities have ignored – expert

Virtually all towns and cities in Ukraine have failed to update their waste management model and are therefore, in effect, in breach of current legislation

How does the region leading the way in eco-tax payments – Dnipropetrovsk Oblast – spend the funds provided by polluters?
How does the region leading the way in eco-tax payments – Dnipropetrovsk Oblast – spend the funds provided by polluters?

At regional level, the most costly measures relate to the condition of water bodies and waste management plans