Ukraine plans to create an additional export route through the Danube

Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Alexander Kubrakov spoke about plans to build an additional export route across the Danube River in order to increase supply volumes. It is assumed that the route will run from the Ukrainian port of Izmail to the city of Constanta in Romania and the Danube ports of Germany.

“Our plans for this year are to remove all artificial barriers for exporters, and we are working to improve internal logistics. We are planning container transportation through the Upper Danube,” Mr. Kubrakov said in an interview Bloomberg on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

Bloomberg notes that the Danube became a priority route for Ukraine after Russia withdrew from the grain deal in July 2023, which guaranteed the safe transport of grain and food from Ukrainian ports. Ukraine also transports significant volumes of agricultural products via rail and road routes. However, since November last year, Polish farmers began to block automobile checkpoints on the border with Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities, due to truck driver strikes on the border with Poland, the country lost more than €1 billion

In 2023, exports of goods from Ukraine decreased by 18.7% to $35.8 billion. Compared to 2021, the figure decreased by almost 48%. After the closure of the grain corridor, Ukraine opened temporary routes for ships in the Black Sea. From August 2023 to February 2024 there were transported 22 million tons of cargo. But the Danube, as Bloomberg notes, still remains a more efficient route. Monthly supply volumes along the Danube route are 1.2–1.8 million tons.

Read more about restrictions on the transit of Ukrainian agricultural products in the Kommersant article. “Ukrainian grain is moving towards a compromise”.

Milena Kostereva