BSTDB Extends USD 9 Million for Ukrainian Black Sea Port Project
Press Release | 30-Nov-2001
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank will make available a credit of 9 million US dollars to finance a major project for a grain terminal in the port of Ilychevsk in Ukraine. The maturity of the loan is 7 years.The project is sponsored by a group of international investors who have established long-term investment interests in Ukraine's agriculture and infrastructure sectors.
The grain terminal, which is Ukraine’s first deep water loading facility, was put into operation in 1998 to handle agricultural bulk commodities. The project financed by BSTDB increases substantially the capacity and efficiency of the Ukrainian ports and it will have significant implications for commodity flows through the Black Sea. With the completion of the expansion and the investments, scheduled for the spring of 2002, the Terminal will have a storage capacity of 135,000 tons, two large vessel loading systems of high speed, a large self use rail marshalling yard, its own modern laboratory, computerized weight systems, two rail discharge systems capable of 17,000 tons per day inbound handling, import capabilities for discharge and rail wagon loading, plus additional territory and excellent prospects for further expansion. The maximum capacity of the terminal will be 6 million tons, making it one of the leading installations of its type in the Black Sea region.
This project financed by BSTDB did not require any government subsidies or any special incentives. It is a purely private investment structure. The operation is the second BSTDB-financed project in the Ukrainian port and maritime sector. Last year BSTDB contributed USD 10 million to finance the construction of a tanker ordered by Avin International S.A. (Greece) at the Ukrainian state shipyards in Nikolayev.
The Port of Ilychevsk, 25 kilometres southwest of Odessa, is one of the major Ukrainian harbours on the Black Sea. The Port handles cargoes between the Black Sea destinations of Batumi and Poti, (Georgia) Burgas and Varna (Bulgaria), Constantsa (Romania), Istanbul (Türkiye) and Thessaloniki (Greece). Additionally, new international traffic includes the Far East, the Middle East, and the EU.