For the first time, a train with Ukrainian grain arrived in Barcelona

For the first time, a train from the Ukrainian border transported 600 tons of grain in containers to the Can-Tunis railway terminal in Barcelona.

The Spanish train carried 25 containers of Renfe Mercancías and arrived at the port of Barcelona on Thursday, October 6, writes Railfreight. Before arriving in Spain, the train traveled 2,400 km from the Chelm terminal on the Polish-Ukrainian border, through Łódź and Duisburg.

“The first problems arose at the terminal in Helm, where it is impossible to predict the situation of traffic jams, which made it difficult to load containers,” writes Railfreight with reference to the press service of the Ministry of Transport of Spain.

In Spain, they concluded that this pilot service does not inspire much optimism. On the contrary, “it highlighted the struggle faced by numerous companies that help Ukrainian exports and the lack of central coordination in Europe, even for projects of such importance.”

“The initiative showed that, in the current context, long-distance rail transportation requires a great effort to coordinate between the various participants in the process,” concluded the Ministry of Transport of Spain.

Instead, the route can be used as an alternative when traditional supply chains are disrupted due to the closure of ports or shipping channels.