The restoration of Mykolaiv’s ports will make logistics cheaper and increase Ukrainian exports.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the ports of Mykolaiv have remained blocked: the enemy is close to the Dnipro–Bug estuary and controls access to the sea. Restoring the entire operation of Mykolaiv’s ports will help reduce logistics costs. This, in turn, will increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian exporters with a corresponding impact on the Ukrainian economy.

For example, in 2021 the Mykolaiv Seaport retained first place among the ports of Ukraine in the transshipment of vegetable oil (2.8 million tons) and second place in the transshipment of grain (12.9 million tons). In addition, the operators of terminals in the Mykolaiv water area handled 1.7 million tons of rolled metal, 1.2 million tons of pig iron, and five million tons of ore.

The opening of Mykolaiv ports will aid the return to pre-war transshipment prices from $25 to $15 per ton of cargo and restore the shipbuilding cluster. However, this scenario is realistic only after the liberation of the Kherson region’s left bank.