Ukraine to export 4.6 mln tons of iron ore through Izov and Uzhhorod in 2024

Thanks to the opening of the sea corridor, the volume of export transportation of Ukrainian Railways (UZ) last year increased by 51.2% y/y – to 84.7 million tons. Among them, export shipments of iron ore grew 1.7 times – to 33 million tons, ferrous metals – by 13.7% y/y, to 5.2 million tons. Cargoes of iron and steel complex occupy more than 45% of the total volume of export freight transportation of UZ.

Export transportation of iron ore in the direction of land border crossings in 2024 amounted to 14.7 million tons (-0.4% y/y). The key iron ore export destinations were:

• Slovakia (Uzhgorod, Chop) – 8.5 million tons (-13.3% y/y);
• Poland (Izov, Mostiska-2) – 5.1 mln tons (47.2% y/y);
• Hungary (Batevo) – 887.9 thousand tons (-33.6% y/y).

Export transportation of steel products to land border crossings in 2024 fell by 41.9% y/y. – to 1.6 mln tons. The immediate reason was the possibility of export through ports. The dynamics of decline in exports of steel products by destination was as follows:

• Poland (Jagodin, Izov, Mostiska-2) – by 48.8%, to 1.1 mln tons;
• Romania (Vadul-Siret, Diakovo) – by 16.1%, to 142.1 thousand tons;
• Slovakia (Uzhgorod, Chop) – by 29.7%, to 80 thousand tons;
• Hungary (Batevo) – by 35.9%, up to 39.2 thousand tons.

Export to Moldova is a special case. Export transportation of iron ore and metal products mainly means transit to the port of Reni, which has no direct connection with the Ukrainian railroad system. The dynamics of cargo transportation by transit through Moldova was as follows:

• iron ore – decrease by 22.9%, down to 188.2 thousand tons;
• steel products – growth by 5.2%, to 233.6 thousand tons.

The key export destination for iron and steel products in terms of volume was the direction to the ports of Greater Odessa. Thanks to the opening of the sea corridor, at the end of last year, export shipments of ore by rail in the direction of ports increased 3.7 times  – to 18.3 million tons, steel products – 2.1 times, to 3.5 million tons.

For more detailed data on exports of iron and steel products by individual border crossings, see the infographic.