Opinion: Ukrainian ports will continue to operate even despite Russia’s withdrawal from the Grain Agreement
28.06.2023 - 12:00
Shipowners are ready to enter Ukrainian ports despite the risks and even without an agreement on the work of the Joint Coordination Center.
This opinion was shared by the director of BPG Shipping, Gennadyi Ivanov. According to the expert, the “immunity” received by shipowners over the past year gives grounds for optimism that even after the rejection of the JCC, the list of candidate ships will not significantly decrease.
“But this is on the condition that, at a minimum, insurance companies will be ready to continue insurance of military risks (perhaps by supplementing the coverage of the route Istanbul-Odesa-Istanbul),” Ivanov noted.
Ivanov also added that today even those shipowners whose ships have been blocked in Ukrainian ports since the beginning of the Russian attack on Ukraine are coming.
“We have encountered situations when shipowners are not ready to go to Israel in the “old” way (where in fact the risks are close to zero, including the anachronism with calls to Arab countries), but at the same time they are ready to go to Ukraine, even sometimes “with their eyes closed” on counter-party risk management,” the expert added.
According to Ivanov, the solution without the JCC could be the creation of a system of escorting military convoys in the Black Sea. As an example, the expert cited the experience of passing through the pirate zone in 2009-2012 in the Strait of Aden, when convoys of civilian ships accompanied by warships were formed.
Currently, losses due to inspection delays are equal to 250-650 US dollars per ton (depending on the cargo lot, the size of the vessel). Therefore, a slight increase in the insurance premium will be incomparable with the sums that are literally “thrown to the wind” today, Ivanov noted. He also added that there is another positive factor — a low freight market, which can encourage shipowners to take risks.
The photo is illustrative.
