Ukrzaliznytsia resumes supplying cargo to the ports of Greater Odesa

After the shelling in late December, the ports of Greater Odesa gradually returned to a stable mode. Despite the almost five-day blackout, the railway supply of goods to the ports has been restored and is now operating smoothly.

This was reported by Elevatorist.com, citing the words of Valery Tkachev, Deputy Director of the Department of Transportation Technology and Commercial Work of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC.

According to him, an average of 45-48 freight trains arrive at the ports of Greater Odesa daily. For comparison, under conditions of fully stable operation, this figure reached about 55 trains per day. We are talking about the ports of Pivdennyi, Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Izmail.

At the same time, recent Russian shelling has affected the operation of some railway stations. In the Pivdennyi port, Berehova station was damaged, but this did not affect the reception of grain cargo, as the station handled mainly ore and metal. Damage was also reported at Chornomorsk station.

Ukrzaliznytsia reported a decrease in the total rail car traffic to ports. The number of railcars with grain decreased from more than 11,000 to about 9,200.

Valeriy Tkachev noted that the ports remain ready to receive grain, and the railroad is able to provide at least 45 trains per day. Air raids and periodic shelling of port infrastructure remain the main factors that complicate the work.

In addition, railroad workers reported difficulties at the Lviv railroad due to heavy snowfall, as well as a difficult situation in the Dnipro region due to damage to the power grid. Currently, power engineers and railroad workers are working to restore power supply and train traffic.

In 2025, the ports of Odesa region transported 147 million tons of cargo to 50 countries. At the same time, berths are being renovated and preparations are underway to transfer terminals to a concession, which should increase transshipment volumes. In the first nine months of 2025, the cargo turnover of the region's seaports reached 61.2 million tons, which is 17.4% less than in the same period in 2024.

Exports accounted for 51.4 million tons, or 76.2% of the total, of which 29 million tons were grain crops. At the same time, imports increased by 42.2% to 9.3 million tons.

Анна Бальчінос