The seaports in Mykolaiv are currently fully capable of resuming operations, as the terminal personnel maintain them in working condition.
Yurii Lytvyn, the head of the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA), announced this at the 2024 Agro Ukraine Summit, the CFTS portal reports, citing the Agroportal publication.
"We can say that we are ready to resume operations at any time, but the military has not permitted the operation of these ports solely because of security concerns," Lytvyn said.
He added he believes that Ukrainian logistics is moving in the right direction. As of May 2024, the ports of Greater Odesa were working steadily while the Danube was developing and handling approximately 2 million tons of cargo per month, which is four times more than it handled before the war but less than it handled in 2023.
At the end of last year, the USPA expressed "cautious optimism" about the possibility of resuming the operations of Mykolaiv and Olvia ports in 2024 "under certain conditions."
Mykola Horbachov, the president of the Ukrainian Grain Association, stated in April that the resumption of the operation of the port terminals in Mykolaiv would increase grain transshipment by 2.5-3 million tons. He said this could free up capacity at the Greater Odesa ports to allow them to handle other export cargoes.
The military currently has reservations about reopening the ports of Mykolaiv and Olvia. "The military leadership is unanimous in its position that unblocking the port of Mykolaiv is impossible because of security issues. The ports of the Mykolaiv region are within the range of direct enemy fire from potentially dangerous areas. The military is making no forecasts (regarding the timeline for reopening them)," the head of the USPA said in January this year.
