Ukraine To Set Up A $500 Million Ship Insurance Fund So Grain Exports Can Move Faster

To get more grain exports moving faster, Ukraine’s parliament has approved a $500 million insurance fund to extend compensation for vessels damaged calling at the country’s ports.

Ukraine is also gearing up for renegotiating the terms of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, a deal with Russia initiated in July 2022, which permits Kyiv to export grains from three Black Sea ports.

Owing to renewal after every three months, the current deal will run out on 18 March. Relevant Ukrainian officials clarified that they would try negotiating a one-year extension of the grain deal rather than renegotiating every three months. At the same time, other government officials are also keen to get other ports like Mykolaiv included in the shipping deal and other commodities like steel.

Ukraine will also seek a rise in examination teams in Turkish waters to eliminate the vessel queue that has grown exponentially this month, reportedly stymieing the export volumes.

Delays in examinations of vessels to and from Ukraine have reportedly been a point of contention between Ukraine and Russia. To lower inspection delays, Ukraine has been considering boosting the minimum size for vessels that carry grains to 25,000 dwt from 15,000 dwt.

The dry bulk exports of Ukraine have now plunged 77.8% in the first year of the war with Russia, per data from BIMCO.
Before the war started, over one-tenth of the maize and wheat shipments of the world would come from Ukraine.

References: Insurance Journal, Arab News