Ukraine now has twice as much transshipment capacity as available amount of grain - official

MOSCOW. June 10 (Interfax) - Ukraine's logistics sector, including Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia), are encountering serious problems due to a decline in grain production by the country's agricultural sector, Alexei Pavlenko, an advisor to the CEO of Nibulon, one of Ukraine's largest grain market operators, said.

Pavlenko held the post of Ukrainian agrarian policy and food minister in 2012-2014.

"The situation on the transshipment market is critical: Ukraine currently has twice as much transshipment capacity as the available amount of grain [...] The transshipment tariffs in our country are now lower than before the crisis. The transshipment fee is $6 per tonne. There were no such figures even before the crisis, because there is simply no grain today. In other words, companies are vying for grain," Ukrainian media quoted Pavlenko as saying at the Agro Ukraine Summit 2025 in Kiev.

These problems with grain flows are also affecting the grain elevator business, which is operating almost at zero today, as well as cargo transportation both by road and by rail, he said.

Pavlenko advised Ukrainian Railways to hold tenders on leasing railcars not for a month but for one season at least, a move that can encourage participation in these tenders and help intensify cooperation with traders and farmers.