“Ukroliyaprom” called on the UZ to make the export of sunflower oil a priority

To increase the export of sunflower oil to at least 100 wagons per day instead of the current 40 and to promote the implementation of priority for it, as well as for the export of agricultural goods in general, Ukrzaliznytsia (“UZ”) was urged by the head of the “Ukroliyaprom” association Stepan Kapshuk during an online meeting with industry participants on Thursday.

“Support the idea of ​​prioritizing the delivery of agricultural goods at least at the level of the government. During the 120 days (terms of validity of the grain corridors), which are given to us for the removal of goods by sea, we need to send as many goods as possible, especially oil,” Kapshuk emphasized.

According to him, the current pace of oil transportation is insignificant, since during the period from August 1 to August 23, its export amounted to 71 thousand tons, or about 1% of the total volume of transported cargo (6.91 million tons).

At the same time, the export of sunflower oil is especially important for Ukraine, as it is much more profitable than the supply of corn and wheat. The foreign exchange gain from the sale of the oil produced in the country for a year exceeds the gain from the sale of the harvest of these two agricultural crops combined, explained Kapshuk.

According to him, increasing the export of sunflower oil will also support the work of oil extraction plants, many of which are currently operating at minimum load or do not work at all, and a simple enterprise within one or two years may lead to a significant increase in price or even the impossibility of its further launch.

In turn, the director of the commercial work department of “UZ” Valery Tkachev, who is participating in the meeting, noted that “Ukrzaliznytsia” as a carrier does not have the authority to set priorities of some cargoes over others, but must serve all the contracts concluded with it. Instead, he suggested that “Ukroliyaprom” increase transportation by ships through the grain corridor, since, according to him, even sending three tankers of 25 thousand tons per month will allow to increase the current volume of exports almost twice.

However, Kapshuk replied that since the beginning of the war, Ukrainian traders have not yet entered into contracts for shipping vessels with a capacity of more than 12,000 tons.

As reported, during the period from August 1 to 23, 2022, UZ exported 1.16 million tons of grain cargo, which is 28% higher than the figures for July as a whole (917 thousand tons), in particular, 549 thousand tons were transported through land border crossings on the western border (in July – 716 thousand tons), and 467 thousand tons were delivered to the ports (last year – 190 thousand tons).

Since the beginning of August, “Ukrzaliznytsia” has exported 71,000 tons of sunflower oil, as well as 78,000 tons of cake and meal of all kinds.

Tags: sunflower oil, export, UkrOliyaProm Association