The Ukrainian Agribusiness Club Association states that the cost of transporting grain for export in the wagons of the Ukrzaliznytsia joint-stock company has increased almost 10 times.
The Ukrainian Agribusiness Club has said this in a statement, Ukrainian News Agency reports.
"Yesterday, regular auctions were held for the services of using Ukrzaliznytsia's grain carriers for grain exports - prices soared from UAH 2,167 per day to a maximum cost of UAH 20,500 per day, that is, an increase of 9.5 times. Thus, even with a turnover of 10 days, the cost of just using the wagon will be UAH 3,150 per ton," the message says.
According to the report, back in June, the Association called on Ukrzaliznytsia not to introduce the practice of auctions in the conditions of war, an artificially created shortage of grain-carriers and the peculiarities of the monopoly position of Ukrzaliznytsia.
“This is bidding for a survival ticket. Imagine if the railway held bidding for each ticket for the evacuation of people from Kharkiv or other cities. This practice can be equated to a crime against the agricultural sector,” Roman Slasten, the director-general of the Association, commented on the situation.
The Ukrainian Agribusiness Club urges the government to immediately stop the practice of such auctions, make available information on the priority of processing freight wagons with agricultural products for export, introduce responsible planning and execution of cargo transportation, and reconsider the decision to increase tariffs by 70%.
As Ukrainian News Agency reported, the Association says that 10-15 million hectares of fields in Ukrainian-controlled territory may not be sown for the 2023 crop due to a lack of storage capacity and marketing opportunities.
From June 29, the Ministry of Infrastructure increased the tariffs for the transportation of goods by rail by 70%.
Ukrzaliznytsia expects that this decision will allow it to receive additional revenue from transportation by UAH 11.259 billion by the end of 2022 and ensure the smooth functioning of the transportation process under martial law.
Who we are: About us, Contacts. How we write news and our principles: Editorial code. We did our best. If you found this valuable – please support us.
To request a correction, please send an email.