Yuzhny Port Deepening Deemed a Shrewd Move

Dredging work at the Yuzhny Port, Ukraine is nearing completion, and cargo owners are already analyzing its benefits. Enhancing the capabilities for working with Capesize vessels will significantly increase the flows of export, import, and transit cargoes.

Access to Capesize vessels (over 200,000 deadweight tons) provides a competitive advantage during transportation of ore and coal cargoes.

Ukraine, with a water depth of 15 meters, was able to ensure the use of only 70% of the tonnage of such vessels and the vessels had to complete loading in the roads (i.e. in the approaches to the port area).

This significantly increased the cost of freight, as well as the time and cost of loading.

“As a confirmation that the right strategy was chosen for development of the Yuzhny Port, a constant increase in cargo traffic is being observed today (it increased by 2.3 million tons in the first half of 2014, compared with the first half of 2013).

At the same time, revenues from port charges are increasing,” said Yurii Vaskov, the Deputy Head of the Association of Seaports of Ukraine.

“The uniqueness of this project lies in the fact that it will begin generating additional revenue from port dues from July 1, i.e. during the stage of its implementation.”

From February 2013 to the beginning of June 2014, the port managed to increase its channel draft from 14.5 meters to 18.5 meters.

Thus, the Yuzhny Port has already become the deepest deep-water port on the Black Sea.

However, under to the project, the water depth will increase to 21 meters by the end of this year.

“Both ship owners and shippers are already seeing the main effects of the dredging work that has been performed.

Previously, ships left berths with a draft of 14.2 meters to finish loading in the roads (to 18.5 meters).

It will no longer be necessary to finish loading in the roads from July. Thanks to the increased loading volumes at berths, the total period for loading a vessel has reduced by 4-5 days,” the Head of the Yuzhny Port’s Administration Maksym Shirokov said.

Three vessels with drafts of 18.5 meters will be loaded before the end of June. The Capesize vessel Kanaris is already being loaded with iron-ore concentrate at the port, and it will depart with a draft of 18.5 meters on June 22, without additional loading in the roads.

Similarly to the development of the Yuzhny Port’s waters, the Administration of Seaports of Ukraine’s Head Andrii Amelin has announced plans to dredge the approach channel in Skadovsk (to 6 meters), the Belgorod-Dniester channel, the Izmail Port, and the Ilyichevsk Port.

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CTS, June 24, 2014