The Ukrainian maritime corridor has switched to a 24-hour mode of operation

Last week, the Ukrainian maritime corridor received the necessary permits from the Navy and began working around the clock.

As noted by the Deputy Minister of Development of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure of Ukraine Yuriy Vaskov, in February the corridor reached a record volume of export and import transportation - 8 million tons. Of them, 65% fell on agricultural products, while the rest was made up of ore, metals, and fertilizer imports. The corridor is currently operating at the same pace as in February, as the weather has been unfavorable over the past week.

The government official also said that within the next two to three weeks, the first container shipments may be carried out through the Ukrainian Sea Corridor. The traffic will start with feeder ships, and container lines will follow them “in the absence of accidents”.

According to updated data, the cargo turnover of the ports of Greater Odessa in February amounted to 8 million tons, of which 5.2 million tons were produced by Ukrainian farmers. These are record monthly export figures not only through the Ukrainian Maritime Corridor, but in general during the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation. As Oleksandr Kubrakov, Deputy Prime Minister for the Reconstruction of Ukraine — Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure, noted, the country is gradually approaching the pre-war indicators of exports through these ports. Today, more than 90% of all agricultural exports go through the ports of Greater Odessa and the Danube ports. Ukraine remains one of the key guarantors of food security. Especially as regards the export of grain to the countries of Africa and Asia. Since the start of the Ukrainian Corridor, 42 countries have received almost 28 million tons of cargo, of which 19 million tons are grain and oil.

It should be noted that, according to operational data of the State Customs Service, as of March 20, since the beginning of the 2023/24 marketing year, Ukraine exported 32.851 million tons of cereals and legumes, of which 3.181 million tons were shipped in March. At the same time, as of the same date last year, the total figure of shipments was 35.81 million tons

However, experts note that at the beginning of March, a slowdown in the rate of export of agricultural products by water transport is observed in Ukraine, compared to the indicators of the previous month. Therefore, according to current trends, the total volume of exports in March may be up to 20% lower than in February.

Currently, 7,288 wagons with grain are heading to the ports of Great Odesa. This is 1088 units more than a week ago. The average daily rate of unloading of wagons in the ports of Greater Odessa is 1,426 wagons. During the week, it decreased by one car per day. Also, the queue of wagons with grain in the direction of the port of Izmail increased during the week - by 165 wagons (by 30.6%), from 540 to 705 wagons. The average daily rate of unloading wagons with grain at the port of Izmail is 104 wagons per day. During the week, the indicator increased by 10 wagons per day (by 10.6%). The increase in unloading at the ports is hindered by constant air alarms. Also, in the last week, constant precipitation has been observed in the Odesa region, which has reduced the unloading of grain on ships by the direct option.