By KYIV. Nov 13 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The attack on the KMAX Ruler ship in the Odesa port on November 8 is an extremely negative incident, which at the same time did not lead to a stop in the operation of the maritime export corridor, First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky said.
“The situation with logistics in the agricultural sector remains changeable, but the general trend in the market is positive: the number of ships that call at the ports of Great Odesa is constantly increasing. Even after the negative incident with the attacked ship, no one stopped. This once again confirms that there is willingness, no matter what, to fight for the country and the agricultural sector,” he said at the Cooperation 360 farmers’ rally in Kyiv on Friday.
According to him, normalizing the work of logistics routes, in particular by sea, would allow farmers to receive an additional $20-30 per tonne, which would improve the situation on the domestic market.
“This is not profitability, but an opportunity for farmers to break even and an incentive to sow grain crops in the spring of 2024,” Vysotsky explained and added that if various circumstances coincide, this can be achieved.
As an example, he cited the allocation last week of $20 million by the Cabinet of Ministers to create an insurance fund for cargo transportation by sea. The total volume of this insurance fund, according to Vysotsky, should reach $500 million, due to the addition of several British insurance agencies to the project. They set themselves the goal of returning insurance for cargo transportation in the Black Sea to 1% of the value of the ship’s cargo, as it was before the full-scale war.
Vysotsky noted the resumption of growth in agricultural exports in 2023, despite its slowdown due to a strike by Polish carriers at Ukrainian-Polish checkpoints. He also pointed out that road transportation of agricultural goods accounts for 5-6% of total exports.
“Everyone here understands that agroexport means the ports of Great Odesa, the Danube and transportation by rail,” the deputy minister emphasized.
