Ukraine officially reopened the Bystre Canal to maritime traffic on 6 August 2025, allowing the passage of vessels with a draft of up to 4.5 meters. This decision opens up new opportunities for shipowners who previously faced restrictions after the temporary closure of the canal.
This was reported by the CFTS portal, citing the publication AgroWeek.
The Bystre Canal was temporarily closed to shipping traffic due to the explosion of a dredging vessel near Vylkove on 23 July.
As a result, vessels were forced to reroute through the Sulina Canal, where port fees are significantly higher.
This led to an increase in voyage costs for ships operating on short routes (coasters) and complicated the situation on the Danube freight market.
"This decision should reduce disbursement costs for shipowners and support negotiations on Danube freight by narrowing the spread between buyers' and sellers' rates," said Pavlo Lysenko, an analyst at ASAP Agri and a freight broker at Atria Brokers.
According to experts, many shipowners were forced to raise their freight rates during the closure of the Bystre Canal to compensate for the additional costs of passage through Sulina. However, charterers deemed the rates offered by carriers unacceptable, resulting in a significant gap in the expectations of the parties and minimal contract activity on the market.
Now that the Bystre Canal has been reopened to shipping traffic, market participants predict a partial revival of freight flows on the River Danube because the conditions for rate negotiations between buyers and sellers are more balanced. Previously, coaster owners had demanded higher freight rates from Danube ports due to the closure of the Bystre estuary, but the situation is expected to improve for all parties now that the canal has reopened.
