Ukraine plans to resume sea ferry, container transportation in a few weeks – deputy minister

The first container shipments along the Ukrainian sea corridor can be carried out within two to three weeks, says Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Yurii Vaskov.

All five container terminals are ready to operate, as almost all of them are involved in the transshipment of agricultural and other products.

Vaskov said that Ukraine also hopes to restore road ferry service within two weeks and rail ferry service in two months.

Last August, Ukraine announced a "humanitarian corridor" to free up ships bound for African and Asian markets. It was also intended to circumvent a de facto blockade by Russia after Moscow reneged on a deal that guaranteed its exports during the war.

The Ukrainian Navy has announced opening a temporary corridor that can be used by all civilian vessels, including those in Odesa ports.

The government has presented a new mechanism for insuring ships against war risks, significantly reducing the current insurance premiums for carriers exporting and importing from or to our country by sea.

1,005 ships have already left Ukrainian Black Sea ports through the humanitarian corridor, delivering almost 30 million tons of cargo to world markets, including grain.

At the beginning of 2024, Ukraine exported more than 20 million tons of cargo from Odesa ports to 32 countries in 6 months of the temporary grain corridor.