Ukrzaliznytsia's grain truck rental rates have risen to the highest level since 2023, leading to an increase in transportation costs

Shelling and damage to railway infrastructure, as well as power outages at both loading and unloading points in ports, reduced the turnover of grain wagons and led to a sharp increase in tariffs for rail transportation, and then road transport.

Due to the delay in the corn harvest, suppliers in November needed additional wagons to speed up deliveries to the port. Rates for rail transportation over distances of up to 500 km increased by 30% in two months, and in some places by 50% - from 700 to 1000-1300 UAH/t. And after the latest auctions for state grain carriers, forwarders raised their rates for November by 2-3 times compared to September-October. This led to an increase in prices for road transportation, and now it is sometimes cheaper to deliver cargo by road than by rail.

Thus, according to the results of the auctions of "Prozorro.Sales" on November 11, the average weighted cost of using grain trucks owned by JSC "Ukrzaliznytsia" reached the highest level since 2023 of 5378 UAH/day (excluding VAT), while in September it did not exceed 200 UAH/day (excluding VAT), and in October it approached 2000 UAH/day. Thus, in two months the price increased by more than 25 times.

RAIL.insider experts explain this increase by the deterioration of the traffic situation, significant downtime of wagons. Last week, the volume of loading exceeded the volume of unloading by approximately 275 wagons per day. This leads to the accumulation of loaded wagons on the network and increases the shortage of empty wagons and the demand for them.

At the same time, experts draw attention to the special status of Ukrzaliznytsia wagons: "When JSC "Ukrzaliznytsia" sells its grain carriers through auctions, it guarantees 100% loading and is responsible in case of non-fulfillment. This creates additional attractiveness, because UZ, as the owner of the wagons and the carrier in one person, has greater opportunities for guarantees. While other grain carrier operators depend on the carrier. Because of this, UZ grain carriers may be more attractive during periods of empty wagon shortages and traffic problems."