In May, Ukraine increased exports of grain cargo by rail by 20.4% compared to April. Up to 807 thousand tons were transported in a month.
In an interview with Forbes, Oleksandr Kamyshin, head of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC, said that 807,000 tons is the limit for railway logistics.
"In order for us to be able to export an additional 300-400 thousand tons, we have to think in terms of" through "infrastructure. We are negotiating with the Poles to allow the operation of grain trucks on their territory. Then it will be necessary to open our operator there and at the same time, wherever possible, to plant branches with narrow tracks on our territory (1435 mm wide tracks are used in Poland)," the head of Ukrzaliznytsia explained.
Kamyshin reminded that before the Russian invasion, Ukraine exported 5-7 million tons of grain a month, half of which Ukrzalizntsia delivered to Ukrainian seaports. At the same time, in November 2021, Ukrzaliznytsia reached a historic maximum of grain cargo transportation of 4.1 million tons.
- Ukraine will begin the phased construction of a narrow European track to connect its European and European railways.
- Currently, due to the blockade of the Black and Azov Seas in Ukraine, there is a problem with the transportation of grain (and not only) abroad. The fact is that Ukrainian trains run on a wide gauge (1,520 mm), common in the former Soviet Union (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Belarus). Meanwhile, most EU countries (except Spain and Portugal) use a narrow gauge (1,435 mm).