Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority denies claims shipowners avoid Ukrainian ports

The Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority (USPA) has denied reports that shipowners are suspending calls at Ukraine’s deep-sea ports amid intensified Russian attacks, Forbes Ukraine reports.

Context. ASAP Agri previously reported that at the beginning of last week, a significant number of firm offers were still available in the Handysize segment for transporting Ukrainian grain. However, by midweek, market sentiment had shifted: shipowners became more cautious and increasingly refrained from further negotiations.

According to the USPA, as of January 20, marine agents had nominated 9% more vessels for entry into the ports of Big Odesa compared with the same date last year. The authority declined to disclose the absolute number of vessel calls for security reasons.

The USPA also noted that during the first 19 days of January 2025, Ukrainian ports handled approximately 2% more vessels than during the same period in December 2024, and more than 3% more than on the same date last year.

Since the beginning of the year, Ukrainian seaports have handled 4.16 million tons of cargo, which is 5% more than in the corresponding period of January last year and about 13% more than in the comparable period of December last year.