In 2024, Ukrzaliznytsia JSC (UZ) increased the volume of cargo transportation in containers by rail by 28% compared to the previous year – up to 258185 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), said Valery Tkachev, Deputy Director of the Commercial Department.
According to him, 162,725 TEUs (63%) were transported on export routes, imports amounted to 55,689 TEUs (21.3%), domestic transportation – 38,681 TEUs (15%), and transit – 1,190 TEUs (0.5%).
The leader among cargoes in terms of containerized transportation was grain cargo, which accounted for 46% of the total volume of transportation, ferrous metals – 20%, oil cake – 9%, oil – 8%, sugar – 4%, synthetic resins – 3.7% and starch and molasses products – 3.6%.
Tkachev noted that one of the main trends in intermodal transportation through Ukraine in 2024 was the absence of a seasonal/peak increase in cargo transportation in November-December, although this period is usually characterized by a seasonal increase in transportation.
According to the UZ representative, the possible reasons for this phenomenon were the low cost of using grain cars – UAH 200-300 per day, which prompted farmers to return to using this type of cargo transportation. Also, due to the reopening of seaports, grain exports have been reoriented – 86-92% of grain is exported through seaports, and grain is transported to ports in grain wagons.
The reduction in the cost of using grain wagons also led to a decrease in the volume of grain cargo transportation in containers in the second half of 2024.
Tkachev also added that the share of rolling stock used by Liski, in particular, fitting platforms, decreased by 24%.
In 2024, Ukrzaliznytsia (UZ) increased the volume of freight transportation by 17.9% year-on-year to 174.9 million tons.
“At the end of 2024, 174.9 million tons were transported by rail in Ukraine, which is 26.5 million tons, or 17.9%, more than last year (2023 – IF-U),” UZ said in an analytical note.
It is reported that the opportunity to increase the volume of rail transportation exists thanks to the Ukrainian sea corridor. The bulk of the cargo traffic is made up of products of farmers and metallurgists transported for export.
Exports were the main driver of rail transportation in 2024, with a share of 48% in total freight traffic, compared to only 38% in 2023. Import cargo transportation volumes in 2024 increased by 40.9% compared to 2023 to 9.63 million tons. Domestic transportation decreased by 5.5% to 80.2 million tons. While in 2023 the share of domestic transportation in total cargo traffic was 57%, in 2024 it decreased to 46%.
In total, in 2024, UZ transported 84.67 million tons in the export direction, which is 51.2% more than in 2023. The largest volume of cargo grains was transported – 34.13 million tons (40% of the volume transported for export), iron and manganese ore – 33.00 million tons (39%), and ferrous metals – 5.17 million tons (6%).
In 2024, 29.2 million tons of grain cargo (86%) was transported to ports, which is twice as much as in 2023. Only 4.9 mln tonnes of grain were transported via land border crossings, which is 41.6% less than in 2023.
In general, the volume of transportation through land border crossings in 2024 decreased by 8.6% compared to 2023, to 30.9 million tons or 37% of the volume of export transportation of all types of cargo. “UZ has 19 railway border crossings, of which 15 are operational.
The volume of transportation to ports in 2024 increased by 2.4 times compared to 2023 to 53.76 million tons. In total cargo exports, their share in 2024 was 63%.
According to the results of 2024, the leading positions in terms of cargo exports are held by the stations: “Chornomorsk (17%), Berehove (14%), Odesa Port (13%), Chornomorsk Port (12%), Izov (11%), Chop (7%), Uzhhorod (6%), and Izmail (4%).
Earlier it was reported that the volume of cargo transportation by UZ in the first 11 months of 2024 increased by 19.4% to 160.9 million tons.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ukrzaliznytsia JSC has produced several more medical evacuation cars equipped as a real mobile hospital, the press service of the Armed Forces Medical Command reports.
“Qualified and timely assistance at all stages of medical evacuation saves our defenders who need it every day,” said Major General Anatoliy Kazmirchuk, Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
He expressed gratitude to all involved for their cooperation in providing quality medical care.
As noted, trains with such cars are used to evacuate seriously wounded servicemen.
“TAS Dneprovagonmash (DVM, Kamianske, Dnipro region) will supply more than 400 freight cars (gondola cars and platform cars) to Ukrzaliznytsia and Lithuanian Railways by the end of the first half of 2025 following the results of the tenders won in November-2024, the company reports on its Facebook page.
“The company started the winter production season by signing two major contracts with Ukrzaliznytsia and Lithuanian Railways,” the company said in a statement.
DVM clarifies that gondola cars of the 12-4106 model will be manufactured for Lithuanian partners, and a new development of the plant – 40-foot platform cars for large-tonnage containers of the 13-4155 model – will be delivered to UZ.
As reported, the Lithuanian rail freight operator LTG Cargo (part of Lithuanian Railways) will purchase 200 gondola cars for bulk cargo transportation from DVM for EUR 12.7 million. The first gondola cars are expected to be delivered in February-April 2025.
For its part, according to Prozorro, on December 3, TAS Dniprovagonmash and Ukrzaliznytsia signed a contract for the supply of 252 units of 40-foot fitting platform cars by June 30, 2025, for UAH 707.011 million (including VAT).
The contract provides for a 50% advance payment within 20 calendar days from the date of invoice.
In addition to TAS Dneprovagonmash, the Research and Mechanical Plant Karpaty participated in the tender for the supply of platform cars to UZ, with a bid of UAH 589.680 million against UAH 589.176 million from DVM, for an expected purchase price of UAH 608.58 million (all excluding VAT).
According to the State Railways Administration, the new platform cars have a tare weight of 20.5 tons and a carrying capacity of 73.5 tons, which “will guarantee the transportation of maximum cargo volumes compared to analogous cars available on the market.”
In addition, the platforms will be able to run on the EU rail network.
“TAS Dneprovagonmash is controlled by the TAS financial and industrial group of businessman Serhiy Tigipko. The plant, which has the capacity to produce 9,000 railcars a year, produced 378 freight cars in 2023, down 34.5% from 2022.
In January-September, the company posted a consolidated net profit of UAH 84.08 million, up 6% compared to the same period in 2023, while consolidated net income increased by 62.8% to UAH 1.61 billion.
Ukrzaliznytsia (UZ) transported a record number of passengers in 2024 and also reached high levels of cargo transportation, said Oleksiy Kuleba, Vice Prime Minister for Reconstruction of Ukraine and Minister of Community and Territorial Development.
“Today we can state that 2024 is becoming a record year for Ukrzaliznytsia both in terms of cargo transportation, which is more than 148 million tons per year, and passenger transportation. For the second year in a row, Ukrzaliznytsia has been transporting more than 20 million people at its facilities,” Kuleba said on Sunday at the ceremony of the first departure of the Kyiv-Budapest train.
The deputy prime minister emphasized that the volume of UZ passenger traffic is significantly higher than before the full-scale invasion, and passenger traffic to the EU countries is hundreds of times higher than before 2022.
According to Kuleba, there are large-scale plans to expand the railway network with European countries in 2025.
“For 2025, we really have a lot of plans to expand the network with European countries, our neighbors. There are plans for Romania, an increase in traffic to Poland,” Kuleba said.
He noted that demand for international rail transportation in Ukraine exceeds supply.
“So, of course, we have a lot of work to do. We will do everything to reduce the load,” the Vice Prime Minister said.
Oleh Holovashchenko, head of the Passenger Company branch, said that the Kyiv-Budapest train, which made its first run on Sunday, will continue to run on a regular basis and can become a worthy alternative to the Kyiv-Warsaw train.
“This train will help relieve traffic with European countries and make it more convenient,” he said.
He specified that in the two days since the opening of ticket sales for the Kyiv-Budapest train, more than 2,000 tickets have been sold, and the load on the first flight exceeded 60%. UZ expects it to grow rapidly.
Earlier it was reported that UZ launches Kyiv-Budapest and Rava-Ruska-Warsaw trains from December 15 together with the Polish state operator PKP Intercity. In addition, UZ together with ZSSK will launch a connecting route to Bratislava.
The Supervisory Board of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC (UZ) has approved the indexation of freight transportation tariffs, the company’s press service reports.
“Tariffs for rail freight transportation have not been indexed for almost two years – since the summer of 2022, and the previous indexation did not bring tariffs to an economically justified level. During this time, the producer price index for industrial products has already reached 176.4%. At the same time, the railroaders proposed to limit the indexation of tariffs to a much more moderate figure: only 37%, or about 13% per annum, given that 2.5 years have passed since the last indexation,” the press service said.
It is noted that the proposals to increase tariffs were approved by the board of UZ on December 5, 2024.
The approved changes will be further submitted for consideration by the Tariff Council under the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, UZ said.
The company reminded that according to the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1392 of December 16, 2009 “On Ensuring Transparency of the State Tariff Policy for the Transportation of Goods by Rail within Ukraine”, tariffs for the transportation of goods by rail within Ukraine should be indexed annually.
“Unfortunately, this rule was not regularly implemented and the dynamics of indexation of tariffs for rail freight transportation lagged far behind changes in prices for the main resources consumed by the railroad,” UZ said, recalling that tariffs for rail freight transportation had not been indexed for almost two years – since the summer of 2022, and the previous indexation did not bring tariffs to an economically justified level. During this time, the producer price index for industrial products has already reached 176.4%.
Since the last revision of freight transportation tariffs, electricity prices have increased by 166%, diesel prices by 110%, spare parts for diesel locomotives by 217%, spare parts for electric locomotives by 22%, bearings by 37%, and solid-rolled wheels by 20%.
It is noted that this deprived the company of the opportunity to repair infrastructure and rolling stock to the required extent, as well as to index the salaries of railway workers, of whom more than 10 thousand are defending Ukraine in the ranks of the Armed Forces, and to fulfill social obligations to them.
“The indexation of freight transportation tariffs is vital for the Ukrainian railways to operate sustainably and meet safety standards. The level of tariff indexation was calculated to be at least sufficient to finance operating expenses and carry out critical infrastructure repairs,” the press service of Ukrzaliznytsia quoted Hafer Cheetah, chairman of the company’s supervisory board, as saying.
It is reported that the planned indexation will make it possible to finance the repair of rolling stock and infrastructure at the minimum required level. Otherwise, there will be significant risks to the continuity of the safe operation of the state’s critical infrastructure.
Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, Chairman of the Board of Ukrzaliznytsia, promised to openly present and explain to customers the changes in the upcoming freight tariffs.
“We will openly present and explain the indexation proposals to our customers, both the largest and smaller shippers from all sectors of the economy, and will also fix with them what compensations and operational improvements they expect from Ukrzaliznytsia,” the press service quoted the chairman of the board of Ukrzaliznytsia as saying.
He emphasized that the railroad continues to deliver cargo reliably despite daily shelling and is restoring track and power infrastructure as soon as possible to avoid letting customers and the entire Ukrainian economy down.
“At the same time, we owe a significant debt to the railroad workers themselves – their salaries are significantly lower than the industry average, and a number of social benefits have been suspended. Indexation of tariffs is critically necessary to ensure that the working conditions of railway workers do not deteriorate,” Pertsovsky said.
Earlier it was reported that the Tariff Council under the Ministry of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure (MiRD) approved the draft decision on the unification of tariffs for freight transportation by rail.
As reported, Ukrzaliznytsia and representatives of Ukrainian business are working together to unify the tariff setting system for rail freight transportation proposed by Ukrzaliznytsia starting in October 2022.
Former Ukrzaliznytsia CEO Yevhen Lyashchenko said in an interview that without unification, the company would not be able to end the year with a profit. According to him, the company’s plan for 2024 is not to increase freight tariffs but to harmonize them. This implies a complete change in the model of their calculation by simplifying the tariff system, which consists of five different classes and more than 20 coefficients. The proposals include a single tariff for the transportation of empty wagons and a division into classes linked to transportation technology.
According to preliminary estimates, the harmonization of tariffs should bring the company an additional UAH 3-4 billion by the end of the year, depending on when the government approves this decision.
