Ukrainian Railways transported 508 thousand tons of iron ore to Hungary in the first half of the year

Iron ore is the main cargo that is transferred through the Ukrainian-Hungarian border crossings

In January-June 2024, Ukrainian Railways  (UZ)t ransported 508 thousand tons of iron ore through the Ukrainian-Hungarian border crossings, which is 31% less than in the same period of 2023. Iron ore is the main cargo heading towards Hungary (34.6% of the total transportation volume). This was discussed during an online meeting of representatives of Ukrainian Railways with Hungarian carriers, Rail.Insider reports.

In general, during the first half of the year, 1.47 million tons of cargo were transferred through the Ukrainian-Hungarian border crossings, which is 44% less compared to the same period in 2023. Among the main nomenclatures, except for iron ore, grain and milled products amounted to 409 thousand tons (-68% y/y), cement – 124 thousand tons. At the same time, no coal was shipped to Hungary this year, while in January-June 2023, 112 thousand tons were shipped.

The volumes of cargo transfer to Hungary fell through both junctions, in particular, Batovo-Epereske – by 47% y/y, to 1.03 million tons, and Chop-Záhony – by 33% y/y, to 437 thousand tons.

In January-June 2024, Ukrainian Railways transported 22.9 million tons of iron ore. Overall, in the first half of the year, UZ transported more than 90 million tons of cargo. This is 28% more than in the same period in 2023.

As GMK Center reported earlier, Ukrainian Railways transported 148.4 million tons of cargo in 2023, down 1.5%, or 2.2 million tons, compared to 2022. Iron ore transportation decreased by 13.2% y/y – to 27.5 million tons, ferrous metals by 10.6% y/y – to 8.2 million tons, and grain by 5.9% y/y – to 30.6 million tons.