The agricultural holding A.G.R. Group and the grain trading company MK Merchants S.A. of businessman Misak Khidiryan, with the start of a full-scale Russian invasion, reoriented the logistics of agricultural products from Ukrainian seaports to road and rail transportation across the border with the EU, as well as to the Ukrainian river ports of Reni and Izmail.
However, even after the end of the war, the de-occupation of the territory of Ukraine and the complete removal of the trade blockade from its seaports, the companies will continue to export part of the grain to the European direction, their owner Misak Khidiryan said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
He also clarified that his holding is looking for opportunities to reduce the logistics shoulder and more convenient export of agricultural products to the EU, and therefore is interested in buying granaries and agricultural enterprises in western Ukraine. At the same time, Khidiryan stressed that at present, the logistics of agricultural products from Ukraine are hindered by the insufficient capacity of the European railway infrastructure and artificial delays in the operation of the maritime “grain corridor” by Russian inspectors.
“After all, the European railway is not capable of transporting the volumes of grain needed by Ukraine, and not only grain. In order to fully use the European infrastructure for export, it is necessary to open additional railway and road border crossings on the border with Ukraine, and, of course, build a European gauge in our country,” the owner of A.G.R. Group emphasized.
“We are also actively exporting along the grain corridor. Frankly, this is a risky option due to long queues, delays in grain truck inspections from the Russian side, and generally very slow operation. But, given the current situation with the cost of logistics during the war, I think grain corridor is a good opportunity,” he stated.
In addition, Khidiryan noted the dubious economic feasibility of exporting agricultural products to Asian and African countries through EU seaports, to which it is transported from Ukraine by road and rail. According to him, the cost of transshipment and reloading of products along this route reaches 50-60% of the total cost of grain, which makes this method of export unprofitable for farmers. Thus, the export of agricultural products to the EU can only be beneficial for export to end consumers in the EU.
In turn, CEO of A.G.R. Group Ihor Shestopalov noted that since the beginning of the war, his holding company has exported almost 55,000 tonnes of agricultural products, while the grain trader MK Merchants ships an average of 8-10 ships with agricultural products through the river ports of Izmail and Reni every month.
“Soybean, rapeseed, barley, wheat, corn, sunflower, buckwheat – we are considering all possible markets for products in the EU, Turkey, Egypt, and Nepal. Since the beginning of a full-scale invasion, we have exported almost 55,000 tonnes. Our partners from MK Merchants are transporting grain through river ports of Izmail and Reni, shipping an average of 8-10 vessels per month,” he said.
In the holding A.G.R. Group includes more than 20 companies. The main direction of its activity is the trade in agricultural products, the cultivation and storage of grain crops, as well as animal husbandry.
A.G.R. Group cultivates land in Poltava, Kyiv, Chernihiv, Mykolaiv and Sumy regions. All grown products are sold on foreign markets.
The holding’s president and head of its supervisory board is businessman Misak Khidiryan.
