USPA denies rumors about shutdown of Greater Odesa ports

The information that shipowners are massively suspending calls to Ukrainian deepwater ports due to increased Russian shelling is not true. The USPA noted that the ports of Greater Odesa are calling at 9% more ships than last year. The regulator does not disclose the absolute number of ship calls for security reasons.

This was reported by the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority in response to a request from Forbes Ukraine.

Earlier, the analytical platform ASAP Agri disseminated data on the growing caution on the part of shipowners. According to the platform, at the beginning of the week there was still a significant number of firm offers in the handysize segment for the transportation of Ukrainian grain, but by the middle of the week the mood changed, and some shipowners began to refrain from new negotiations.

At the same time, the USPA emphasized that the actual performance of the ports shows an increase in activity. In the first 19 days of January 2026, Ukrainian ports handled about 2% more ships than in the same period in December 2024, and more than 3% more than in January last year. The total volume of cargo transportation since the beginning of the year has reached 4.16 million tons, which is 5% more than in the same period in January 2025 and about 13% more than in December last year.

The context for discussing the situation in the ports is the constant pressure from Russia. Over the past year, Russia has carried out more than 1,100 strikes on Ukrainian railroad infrastructure and almost a hundred combined attacks on ports. Up to 90% of Ukraine's exports are now transported by sea.

According to the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development, in the last quarter of 2025 alone, Russian shelling damaged 20 merchant ships and destroyed 47 port facilities. The intensity of the strikes has more than doubled over the year, Deputy Minister Andriy Kashuba said in an interview with Forbes Ukraine in early January.

At the same time, analysts noted that amid military risks, agricultural exports are showing a decline. In January 2026, Ukrainian farmers exported an average of 92.5 thousand tons of grain per day, which is 17% less than in January 2025.

In 2025, the ports of Odesa region transported 147 million tons of cargo to almost 50 countries. At the same time, the modernization of berths and preparations for the transfer of terminals to a concession are underway, which should increase transshipment volumes.

Анна Бальчінос