Drones paralyze Russian grain exports at three Black Sea terminals - Media
Photo: Grain carrier (Getty Images)
Three of Russia's largest Black Sea grain terminals have restricted truck deliveries of grain due to rising risks to shipping and mounting pressure on logistics, Reuters informs.
As a result, cargo from Russia's southern regions was redirected to Black Sea terminals by road and rail. However, attacks on Black Sea ports have also intensified, significantly increasing logistical risks.
"The risks have increased, and there are fewer and fewer people willing to take bold, reckless risks," a source told the outlet.
Which terminals are affected?
The restrictions apply to the KSK terminal and the Novorossiysk Grain Terminal (NZT) in Novorossiysk, as well as ZTKT in Taman. Together, the three terminals have a combined annual grain handling capacity of more than 20 million tonnes. Russia exports around 50 million tonnes of grain by sea each year.
The two terminals in Novorossiysk continue to accept grain delivered by rail, although such shipments are only possible from Russia's southern regions, one source said.
Around one-third of the grain handled by the two Novorossiysk terminals normally arrives by truck, while ZTKT relies exclusively on road deliveries. The terminals ship grain to major buyers of Russian exports, including Egypt and Türkiye.
Earlier, Bloomberg reported that Russia plans to equip grain carriers with machine guns and armour, and provide military escorts to protect grain exports from Ukrainian strikes.
