Port in Odesa region overcharges and puts pressure on operators

The state-owned enterprise Reni Sea Commercial Port is accused of abusing its monopoly position.

This was reported by the Southern Interregional Territorial Department of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

According to the AMCU, the port has set inflated prices for the use of its infrastructure for companies operating on its territory. This has limited the activities of port operators who are unable to use alternative services due to the lack of competitors in the region. One of these companies was outraged by the high tariffs and appealed to the antitrust authorities, which triggered an investigation.

Based on the preliminary results of the investigation, the committee found that such prices would not have been possible in a competitive environment. The Antimonopoly Committee qualified the port's actions as an abuse of dominance, which is a violation of the law. On October 25, 2024, a case was officially opened to check the port's actions for violations of antitrust laws.

Meanwhile, the Reni Sea Commercial Port has selected a contractor for the routine repair of port fence sections of the Third Cargo District. The procurement was conducted in the format of an open tender with special features and the USPA's chosen contractor, Prima-Stroy LLC, had no competitors.

Earlier, state auditors failed to inspect the procurement of the Reni branch of the State Enterprise "Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority" for the repair of berth No. 29 for a total of UAH 14.3 million.

This is not the first attempt by the Southern Office of the State Audit Service to find out the legality of spending by state-owned maritime enterprises. Earlier, auditors failed to conduct planned state financial control measures at the State Enterprise Commercial Sea Port Chornomorsk and the State Enterprise Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Commercial Sea Port.

Ірина Глухова