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Gallery|Russia-Ukraine war

Romanian port becomes key transit hub for Ukrainian grain

Ukraine races against time to export its grain through Romania before the new harvest begins.

A Ukrainian barge carrying 2000 tons of cereal and was unloaded in 4 hours at one of the Constanta port terminals.
A Ukrainian barge carrying 2,000 tonnes of cereal was unloaded in four hours at one of the Constanta port terminals. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
By Alexandra Radu
Published On 16 Jun 2022

Constanta, Romania – The Romanian Black Sea port in the city of Constanta has become one of the main transit hubs for Ukrainian grain export, with the war-torn country in a race against time to export about 20 million tonnes of grain stuck in its silos in time to accommodate the harvest of its new crops, which is set to start next month.

“Before the war, there was absolutely no Ukrainian cereal transiting the Constanta port. Now, it amounts to approximately 30 percent of our activity,” said Dan Dolghin, director of the cereal operation at Comvex, one of the main grain operators in the Constanta port.

With a grain storage capacity of 1.5 million tonnes and featuring the fastest cereal handling terminal in the European Union, the port of Constanta became a viable alternative in the context of the maritime blockade of the Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which used to be the main export routes for cereal before the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Since the blockade, 616,000 tonnes of Ukrainian grain have reached the Constanta port, with an additional 166,500 tonnes set to arrive in the following weeks, according to the port’s administration.

The relatively slow pace of the Ukrainian grains transiting the Romanian port is set by difficulties in transporting high volumes of cereal from Ukraine to Constanta by land, or by barge via the Danube River from the small Ukrainian ports of Ismail and Reni.

“We initiated the development of a new investment aiming to increase the speed of unloading the barges, the transportation method in which significant quantities of cereal from Ukraine reach us. This investment, which will be operational by the end of June, will increase the unloading capacity of barges to about 28,000 tonnes per day,” said Viorel Panait, director of Comvex.

Slow pace

Romania’s land border crossings with Ukraine and Moldova have been jammed in the recent weeks by queues of trucks longer than 10km (6 miles), waiting for days for customs checks.

There are coordinated efforts being made by the Romanian and Moldovan governments to supplement the number of customs officers and open additional border transit lanes in order to decrease the waiting time at the border.

By train, the main difficulty is the difference in the gauge of the Ukrainian and the EU railways, train wagons needing adjustments before they can cross into Romania, resulting in a slow transit speed, with trains waiting for weeks to cross.

The Romanian transport ministry started the rehabilitation of 4.5km (2.8 miles) of wide gauge railway, which links Ukraine and Moldova to the Romanian port of Galati, the main regional port on the Danube River.

The railway, which has been out of operation for the last 20 years, proves to be essential in decreasing the transit time for cereal and other bulk goods from Ukraine, as its gauge matches the one of the railways in Ukraine and Moldova.

The proximity of Constanta port both by land to Ukraine and by maritime routes to the Suez Canal “make Romania the best candidate to handle these supply routes, which this way become shorter”, said Panait.

“Considering the large grain volumes that are in need of export from Ukraine, I believe this has to be a conjugated effort of all the European operators that have the capacity to participate,” he said. “There is no place for ego here.”

The Meritius ship, with a capacity of 30.000 tons, was loaded with Ukrainian corn for export at Comvex, one of the main cereal operators in the Constanta port. The loading operation took 23 hours with rainy weather conditions slowing down the loading rhythm
The ship Meritius, with a capacity of 30,000 tonnes, was loaded with Ukrainian corn for export at Comvex, one of the main cereal operators in the Constanta port. The loading operation took 23 hours, with rainy weather conditions slowing down the loading. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
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Workers move from a Ukrainian cereal barge that was being unloaded. Constanta port's connection to the Danube river, the low cost of transportation and the large quantities that can be shipped on the Danube by barge offer an efficient alternative to the congested European rail and road transport.
Workers step off a Ukrainian cereal barge that was being unloaded. Constanta port's connection to the Danube River, the low cost of transportation and the large quantities that can be shipped on the Danube by barge offer an efficient alternative to congested European rail and road transport. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
Constanta port houses the fastest cereal terminal in EU, with a ship loading capacity of 72.000 tons per day. The unloading and loading operations are highly automated, coordinated by a small number of workers.
Constanta port houses the fastest cereal terminal in the EU, with a ship-loading capacity of 72,000 tonnes per day. The unloading and loading operations are highly automated and coordinated by a small number of workers. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
Construction workers are working 14 hours per day towards the fast forward completion of a new barge unloading terminal at Comvex, one of Constanta's port operators.
Construction workers labour 14 hours per day towards the fast-forward completion of a new barge unloading terminal at Comvex, one of Constanta's port operators. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
A cereal truck is unloaded at one of the port's operators. The cereals also reach Constanta port by truck, but this method is far less effective than by barge, approximately 60 trucks being the equivalent in capacity of 1 barge. The Romanian government took measures to increase the customs processing speed at the road borders of Romania with Ukraine and Moldova, in order to facilitate the transit of cereal trucks that have been forming queues with several days waiting times at the borders crossings.
A cereal truck is unloaded at one of the port's operators. The cereals also reach Constanta port by truck, but this method is far less effective than by barge, about 60 trucks being the equivalent in capacity of one barge. The Romanian government took measures to increase the customs processing speed at the road borders of Romania with Ukraine and Moldova, in order to facilitate the transit of cereal trucks that have been forming queues - with waiting times of several days - at the border crossings. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
Workers from the port operator and the Romanian railroad company are unloading a cereal train from Ukraine in the Constanta port. Up to 150 wagons per day, a quantity of more than 8000 tons of cereal can be unloaded from trains at this operator.
Workers from the port operator and the Romanian railroad company unload a cereal train from Ukraine in the Constanta port. Up to 150 wagons per day - a quantity of more than 8,000 tonnes of cereal - can be unloaded from trains at this operator. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
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The main slow down regarding transportation of cereals by train from Ukraine to the Constanta port is the fact that the rail gauge in Ukraine is different from the one in the EU. When the trains cross the border into Romania, all the wheels under the wagons must be adjusted to fit the EU rail gauge.
The main slowdown in transporting cereals by train from Ukraine to the Constanta port is the fact that the rail gauge in Ukraine is different from the one in the EU. When the trains cross the border into Romania, all the wheels under the wagons must be adjusted to fit the EU rail gauge. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
Old train wagons lie discarded
Old train wagons lie discarded on the tracks reaching the Constanta port, decreasing transportation capacity into the port. In May 2022, the government authorised an investment into the rehabilitation of 90 railway lines entering Constanta port to speed up the transportation of merchandise. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
Cereal silos of various operators are seen in the Constanta port. Over the last 10 years the port has doubled its cereal storage capacity to 1.5 million tons.
The cereal silos of various operators are seen in the Constanta port. Over the last 10 years, the port has doubled its cereal storage capacity to 1.5 million tonnes. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
“Currently the storage capacity is full and we are expecting difficulties in a couple of months when the Romanian cereal crops will be harvested and we will need to handle both at the same time”, said Dan Dolghin, director of the cereal operation at Comvex.
"Currently the storage capacity is full and we are expecting difficulties in a couple of months when the Romanian cereal crops will be harvested and we will need to handle both at the same time," said Dan Dolghin, director of the cereal operation at Comvex. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
The cereal unloading and loading activities, which are highly automatized, are coordinated remotely from the control room at one of the operators in Constanta port.
Cereal unloading and loading activities, which are highly automated, are coordinated remotely from the control room at one of the operators in Constanta port. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]
The quality of the cereals is assessed by a quality control officer at one of the operators.
The calibre of the cereals is assessed by a quality control officer at one of the operators. [Alexandra Radu/Al Jazeera]