The business calls for Mykolaiv Port to be involved in the “Grain Initiative”.
1.03.2023 - 12:00
Ukrainian business associations call on the parties of the “Grain Initiative” to extend it for a year, as well as to involve the Mykolaiv Seaport.
Ukrainian business calls on the UN and Turkey to contribute to the stable work of the Grain Initiative, as well as to ensure free commercial shipping in the Black Sea region. The European Business Association, the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine and the Ukrainian Club of Agrarian Business made a joint statement.
The associations also emphasized once again that the Russian inspectors of the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) are artificially blocking the work of the initiative and disrupting free navigation in the Black Sea. Currently, 140 vessels are waiting for inspection in the Bosphorus, and Ukrainian ports are operating at only 30% of their capacity.
“At the same time, the movement of russian ships in the Black Sea is not limited to inspections, and the amount of cargo transported by the Azov and Black Seas from russian federation is about 250 million tons for 2022,” the statement said.
If the initiative works properly, Ukrainian grain exports could be 30-40% higher. However, at present, about 10 million tons of agricultural products have not been shipped to international markets, in particular to countries with a high level of hunger – Ethiopia, Yemen, Afghanistan.
The Ukrainian business community called on the UN and Turkey:
— to take measures to ensure the stable and timely work of inspectors in the SCC to speed up the movement of ships;
— to ensure free trade navigation in the Black Sea for all parties or to introduce inspection of all Russian ships;
— to support the extension of the Initiative for at least one year with automatic extension for the same periods, unless one party notifies the intention to terminate or change the initiative;
— to include the Mykolaiv seaport, as well as other ports and terminals located in the Buzka-Dnieper Canal, the specialized seaport “Olvia”
to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, to increase throughput for grain export.
