Ukraine plans new Danube export route amid Polish border blockade

Ukraine plans to create an additional export route along the Danube to avoid transportation through Poland. This was reported by Bloomberg with reference to Deputy Prime Minister for Reconstruction and Minister of Community, Territorial and Infrastructure Development Oleksandr Kubrakov, the relevant agency said.

Kubrakov told representatives of the agency during the Munich Security Conference that plans for the current year are to remove all artificial obstacles for exporters. In addition, the agency is working to improve domestic logistics.

«We are planning to transport containers across the lower Danube, as Romania is ‘more predictable’ than the Polish border,» Bloomberg quoted the minister as saying.

According to the agency, the route will run from one of the Ukrainian ports to Romania’s Constanta and the Danube ports of Germany. Earlier, the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company and the relevant ministry announced the construction of a second SLG barge and preparations to launch container barge caravans to the Middle and Lower Danube.

The new additional route across the Danube is intended to increase Ukraine’s exports to the level they were at the beginning of the war. According to Kubrakov, although many exporters prefer the Black Sea due to cost, the country’s transshipment volumes through the Danube still amount to 1.2-1.8 million tons per month.

Last year, after the Russian Federation withdrew from the Black Sea grain corridor, the Danube became a priority route for supplies from Ukraine. At the same time, the country uses roads and railways, but exports through Poland have now dropped to 300 thousand tons per month compared to about 1 million tons in 2022 due to the blockade of road crossings. The team of the Ministry of Infrastructure is making efforts at all levels to resolve the situation.

As GMK Center reported earlier, last December, Ukraine exported 7.34 million tons of cargo by sea. This figure increased by 30.7% compared to November. Exports by sea are growing thanks to the joint efforts of the Ukrainian government and international partners. In total, in 2023, the country increased exports by sea by almost 1 million tons compared to 2022 . n addition to grain, other goods, including metal, are exported by this route.