Additional costs for the delivery of Ukrainian agricultural products to alternative unloading points in the case of reorientation of exports from the sea route amount to EUR50-90 per tonne, said Oleh Khomenko, director general of the association Ukrainian Club of Agrarian Business (UCAB).
He stated this during a joint press conference of representatives of the mining and metallurgical and agricultural sectors entitled "Ukrainian export without sea: why ports have no alternative" at the press center of the Interfax-Ukraine news agency on Thursday.
"Logistics chains that are being rebuilt now cannot fully replace the Black Sea - neither in terms of complexity of the route, nor in terms of economy and throughput, nor in terms of cost. Because now the additional costs of delivering cargo to alternative unloading locations - the Black or Baltic Sea - amount to EUR 50 to EUR 90 per tonne," Khomenko said.
According to him, the increase in logistics affects the competitiveness of agricultural production and the financial condition of agricultural enterprises, as well as the receipt of foreign exchange earnings.
He noted that the current situation is especially critical with regard to the production cycle in the agricultural sector, since Ukraine is entering the autumn sowing period, when agricultural producers need to accumulate funds. At the same time, according to him, problems with places of grain storage and its shipment are piling up.
According to him, the period of December-January will be the most critical for the agricultural sector. If the Ukrainian seaports are not unlocked by this time, the spring sowing campaign, which will begin in March-April, may be threatened with failure due to a lack of funds among agricultural producers.
According to Khomenko, the increase in Ukrzaliznytsia tariffs by 30% additionally increases the cost of logistics for agricultural enterprises exporting products, so it should be temporarily canceled.
"This decision should be reconsidered. And for the time being, we should come to the conclusion that this increase in tariffs should be canceled at the government level or at the level of Ukrzaliznytsa, in order to alleviate the situation with liquidity and the cost of logistics for agricultural and other enterprises that export their products," he said.
