Ukraine rail in focus again as operator cuts wagon wait

Ukraine’s railway administrators, Ukrainian Railways, has improved the circulation of grain wagons cutting some of the delays around moving grains in the country, according to a review of its November operations published Monday.

According to their data, the average time wagons took to be booked and then circulated back into use was 8.09 days, a fall of 1.57 days versus October, while the time taken for each grain cargo saw a marginal improvement from 5.44 days to 5.33 days.

However, the progress came as the agency mounted a sustained campaign to improve the movement and availability of wagons, focusing on optimising key grain routes, adjusting loading plans and identifying ways to improve grain use in peak periods.

Challenges remain though, particularly in the availability of suitable trucks, with the agency’s website – an adjunct of the Ministry of Transport – stating that there are currently 665 covered wagons available.

That is from a total freight car fleet of something in the region of 170,000 freight cars.

“We have logistics problems… There is a lack of railcars,” one trading source told Census.

The news comes hard on the heels of several announcements relating to Ukraine’s rail services, with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development undertaking a substantial load to secure 3,400 new railcars, while news UkrAgroConsult also reported that the state company is also negotiating with Kazakhstan to lease locomotives.

According to Ukrainian Railways, since August the south western railway has moved over 3 million mt of new crop grains in 51,439 wagons. According to the agency, 30,000 mt of grain is loaded every day on some 450 wagons.