A team of experts from the European Commission led by Mr. Michael Hager (Chief of Staff of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis) will visit Romania on Friday and Saturday to discuss ways to increase the capacity of the Danube ports, the Commission announced. on Thursday

The schedule of European officials includes visits to port facilities and meetings with authorities, operators, carriers and traders. Discussions will focus on, among other things, ways to remove bottlenecks, increase capacity, improve transit and simplify procedures and controls.

In Galatsia, a team of experts will visit the port and meet with representatives of the Lower Danube River Administration, Galatsia Port Administration and pilots.

In Constanta, a group of experts will visit the port of Constanta and meet with representatives of the Romanian government, the Port of Constanta administration and customs. The delegation will also meet with representatives of operators, transporters and grain traders of the port of Constanta.

The European Commission has created a coordination platform on exports from Ukraine to work closely with countries such as Romania, Moldova and Ukraine to improve the transit and flow of goods to and from Ukraine along the solidarity corridors.

Romania has pledged to double the capacity of its main port on the Black Sea

It will be recalled that Romania has committed to double the carrying capacity of its main port on the Black Sea and transport routes on the Danube within two months to help Ukraine export grain, Prime Minister Marcel Čolaku said.

Cholaku told the Financial Times that his plan would be implemented regardless of Russian attacks on Ukrainian ports across the Danube.

“In 2023, Ukraine will have about 40 million tons of grain for export,” Cholaku said. “In order to [facilita] exports, we have increased capacity both at the Port of Constanta and on the roads leading to the Port of Constanta to make this possible. We mobilized as much as we could.”

Romania’s commitment to increase shipping corridor capacity by dredging the Danube and expanding port infrastructure comes after Russia canceled an agreement that allowed Ukrainian grain to reach world markets via the Black Sea. Moscow has also threatened commercial vessels leaving Ukrainian ports, leading to the diversion of exports through the Danube waterways.

“We have learned our lessons well regarding Russia,” Čolaku said. “We have zero dependence on Russian energy carriers or resources. Our support for Ukraine is unconditional.”

Increasing the throughput capacity of the Black Sea port of Constanta and other routes will allow doubling the export of Ukrainian grain to 4 million tons per month, he said. “Investment continues in the Sulin Canal,” he added, referring to Romania’s main deep-water waterway through the Danube Delta.

Despite repeated Russian attacks on Ukrainian grain silos in the Danube ports of Izmail and Reni, he said there were “solutions” – such as allowing overnight vessel transit from October and increasing cargo traffic by at least 14 meals a day. Doubling the size of the barges also “means that Ukraine will not have to use grain warehouses as much,” he said.

Shipping industry officials told the FT the plan was feasible.

Romania will also open more road checkpoints and improve railway infrastructure at stations on the border with Ukraine to speed up the transfer of goods, Čolaku added.