Why this is important to Wisconsin businesses: The grain terminal at Yuzhny is being built by Cargill in a joint venture, and will be open to third parties.
Cargill announced plans to build and operate a new grain terminal at the Black Sea’s Yuzhny port, in a joint venture with Ukraine’s MV Cargo.
The terminal will have an annual loading capacity of 5 million metric tons of grain and other commodities. Ukraine is currently able to ship about 35 million metric tons of grain from its seaports, but the government has said it wants to double export loading capacity within the next five years. Ukraine is expected to export a record 37 million metric tons of grain this season.
“Through this investment, Ukraine's port infrastructure will be expanded and will provide greater efficiencies to connect Ukraine's surplus agricultural crops with parts of the world that need more food. It will add to our footprint of port facilities in the Black Sea region, and confirms our intention to keep investing in Ukraine's agricultural sector,” said Andreas Rickmers, head of Cargill's grains and oilseeds business in Europe.
Cargill had shown interest in the recent years in building a port grain terminal on the Black Sea, which would be a step in the development of a long-term strategy for grain and oilseed business in the Black Sea region.
Construction of the terminal should begin in March 2016, and is expected to be completed by the spring of 2018. The joint venture will operate the terminal, and Cargill will be a major customer, but the facility will also be open to third parties.