Ukraine seeks to expand capacity of Danube ports

The number of vessel calls at Ukraine’s Greater Odesa ports has declined, but the ports remain operational. At the same time, Ukraine and Romania are discussing ways to increase the capacity of the Danube ports, according to Serhii Derkach, First Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories.

“We are not shutting down the ports. Ships are still arriving and departing. Their number has decreased, but we hope traffic will recover. The Danube ports are also operating. We are working with Romania to expand their capacity, just as we did in 2022 and 2023 when Ukraine faced major challenges with maritime logistics. At that time, the Danube ports handled a significant share of export operations,” Derkach said.

He added that Ukraine continues to have the capacity to carry out export and import operations by rail and road. In particular, Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia) is working to return damaged locomotives to service as quickly as possible, with most repairs completed successfully.

“As of today, we do not see a crisis. The President recently held a dedicated meeting on ensuring the continued operation of the maritime corridor. This issue remains a top priority for the country’s leadership, and every possible effort is being made to address it,” the deputy minister said.

Commenting on lower grain exports, Derkach noted that current shipments mainly consist of carryover stocks from the previous season that had accumulated for various reasons.

“Farmers are able to wait and know how to wait. We need to understand how critical it is for them to export grain immediately. At this stage, we do not see an urgent need for immediate shipments,” he added.

In July, Russia intensified missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure and commercial vessels. Despite this, Ukraine’s maritime corridor remains operational. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, it has handled more than 200 mln tons of cargo, including over 120 mln tons of grain.

Tags: Ukraine, export, Romania, Danube ports