Container lines Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk have resumed services to Ukraine’s Black Sea ports for the first time since the Russian invasion in February. Hapag-Lloyd has introduced a sea shuttle service between Chernomorsk and Constanta, while Maersk has launched the first deep-sea container service to Ukraine in cooperation with Iteris. MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co plans to resume regular feeder services to the port of Odesa, with the first call scheduled for mid-June 2024.
Hapag-Lloyd has announced the launch of a new sea shuttle service between Ukraine and Romania from the Fishport terminal in Chernomorsk to the DP World terminal in Constanta. The service will commence on 27 May 2024 with departures every five days. The shuttle service is designed to provide several benefits, including schedule flexibility, availability of reefer plugs for refrigerated cargo and avoidance of congested inland routes. It also eliminates road weight restrictions, allowing for smoother cargo planning and reducing local formalities and costs at the port of Constanta.
A couple of days earlier, Maersk announced the return of its deep-sea container service to Ukraine since the invasion. In cooperation with Ukrainian feeder operator Iteris, Maersk is using a vessel with a capacity of over 1,100 TEU to link the port of Chornomorsk with Constanta. This service represents a significant milestone, restoring a vital trade link that had been disrupted. According to Daniil Melnychenko of Odessa-based consultancy Informall BG, the service is expected to double in volume in the coming months as more shipping lines join and additional vessels are added. This could allow direct shipping from Egypt and Turkey to Ukraine, bypassing Romania.
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co also plans to resume regular feeder services to the port of Odesa in June 2024. The service will operate between the Turkish port of Tekirdag and the port of Odesa, with the first call scheduled for mid-June. MSC will be the first international container line to re-establish services to Odesa since the start of the full-scale invasion. Prior to the war, MSC operated two feeder services to Odesa, contributing significantly to the Ukrainian seaport’s container traffic.
And the Turkish shipping company Akkon has also started a feeder service to Chornomorsk using its own vessels. Akkon, which has operated a service to the Danube port of Izmail since the beginning of the war, is expected to use its established presence to transfer significant volumes to larger vessels with better scheduling.