Port attacks may accelerate the shift of edible oil and meal exports to Ukraine’s western border

Russian attacks on port infrastructure could further reshape the logistics of Ukraine’s exports of vegetable oils, meals, and oilseed cake. Ukrainian Railways expects an increasing share of processed oilseed products to be redirected through western border crossings in order to reduce the risks associated with strikes on port terminals and storage facilities.

During the first half of July, rail transport moved 50.4 thsd tons of vegetable oils, down 23.2% from the same period last year but 2.4% higher than in June. Shipments of meals and oilseed cake totaled 78.1 thsd tons, down 9% year-on-year.

According to Valerii Tkachov, Deputy Director of the Transportation Technology and Commercial Operations Department at Ukrainian Railways, the decline in vegetable oil shipments compared to last year is due to a smaller oilseed harvest, depleted raw material stocks, and seasonal maintenance at processing plants. He added that more than half of Ukraine’s oil extraction plants are currently idle.

The structure of rail export shipments for processed agricultural products already differs significantly from that of grains. While 90% of grain transported by rail is shipped to seaports, 75% of vegetable oils and 89% of meals and oilseed cake are already routed through western border crossings. During the first half of July, only 12.6 thsd tons of vegetable oils and 8.4 thsd tons of meals and oilseed cake were delivered to seaports by rail. According to Valerii Tkachov, continued attacks on port infrastructure could further accelerate this shift.

Ukrainian Railways is already preparing for a possible increase in cargo volumes through the western border. The company is considering converting part of its grain wagon fleet to 1,435 mm European-gauge bogies, which would enable faster growth in exports of vegetable oils, meals, oilseed cake, and other agricultural products to EU countries.

Tags: export, edible oils, rail transportation