Ukraine launches concession project in the port of Chornomorsk

Ukraine has launched its first public-private partnership project in the port sector in Chornomorsk during the full-scale invasion. This is stated in a report by the Ministry of Development.

The relevant order on the creation of a tender commission was signed by Deputy Prime Minister for the Restoration of Ukraine – Minister of Community and Territorial Development Oleksiy Kuleba. The next steps will be the preparation of documentation with the participation of the IFC, EBRD, and leading consultants, the announcement of the tender, and the selection of an investor.

The project includes the first and container terminals of the port of Chornomorsk with six deep-water berths and all infrastructure. Ownership of these strategic assets remains with the state, while the investor undertakes modernization and management on the basis of a transparent long-term agreement.

The Ministry of Development outlined the following scope of the project:

• hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in the modernization of berths and equipment;
• over $1.1 billion in revenues to the state and local budgets over 40 years;
• more than a thousand jobs with guarantees for people;
• restoration of container traffic to 250,000 TEU per year in three years, with the prospect of returning to the pre-war level of over half a million.

The project has already attracted the interest of more than 40 international port operators and investors, which will ensure high competition and the best conditions for the state, according to the ministry’s statement.

In July this year, the state-owned enterprise “Black Sea Commercial Port” resumed transshipment of imported steel billets for the first time in the last decade. The return of metal products to the port’s capacity has not only expanded the range of cargo handled, but also strengthened the enterprise’s resilience in the context of the war.