For safety reasons, Ukrainian ports have banned the transshipment of explosives, which include fertilizers. How will the import of ammonia and nitrate be reoriented?
In July, Ukrainian fertilizer importers faced unexpected restrictions: the military banned them from unloading ammonia and nitrate in Ukrainian seaports. The Commander of the Naval Forces of Ukraine, Vice Admiral Oleksiy Neizhpapa, recommended that vessels carrying explosives not enter Ukrainian ports and even the territorial waters of our state. The Sea Ports Administration of Ukraine received a corresponding letter on July 7. The USPA, in turn, sent a message to maritime agents and port operators.
"In order to prevent a man-made disaster as a result of the enemy hitting a ship, vehicle or storage facility with dangerous goods, we propose to take measures to prevent the Sea Ports Administration from approving the entry of ships to Ukrainian ports with cargoes of ammonia-based substances, carrying out loading and unloading operations with them, and storing them in the territories of ports," the Navy commander's letter says.
It also recommends that the USPA not include such ships in the plans for entry to Ukrainian sea ports. And those that did arrive were recommended to be unloaded in neighboring countries, "which the enemy does not strike at."
And although the letters from the Navy and USPA are of a recommendatory nature, and the decision to ban the import of these substances by sea must be approved by the government, the ban is already in effect. Even those ships that were headed to Ukrainian ports were forced to go, for example, to Romania. And on the approach to the Romanian port of Sulina at the mouth of the Danube, a traffic jam of dozens of ships formed.
"Ships loaded with fuel and other dangerous goods have priority for passage through the Sulina Canal. The commission passes at the entrance to the canal, the ship does not moor in Sulina. Such ships enter the port in the morning so as not to anchor overnight. At the same time, the port of Galati has the ability to transship dangerous goods, including saltpeter, directly into wagons or trucks," notes Kateryna Kononenko, operations manager of Avalon Shipping.
"We have already received requests for the transshipment of fertilizers in Galati. The price started from 5.3 euros per ton (big bag), some companies called the cost 9.5 euros," she adds.
Recall that much earlier, another cargo - fuel - fell under a similar ban. In Ukrainian seaports, fuel is not reloaded during the war, it is forced to go through the Danube ports. "Tankers are simply not allowed to enter the seaports of Ukraine. The military does not give permission for this, and the Ministry of Infrastructure, accordingly, does not give us permission," - the owner of Orange Oil, Roman Rumyantsev, previously told the Central Transport and Communications Agency.
The logic of the military here is clear: ammonium nitrate is used not only for peaceful purposes, but also for the manufacture of explosives. And at the same time, it is extremely fire-hazardous. Let us recall the explosion in the port of Beirut, which in 2020 destroyed part of the capital of Lebanon. After that, Ukraine, just in case, urgently began to check the safety of storing nitrate. In conditions of war and Russian strikes on port infrastructure, the risks are, quite understandably, much higher than in peacetime. And it is even surprising that such a ban was resorted to only now.
And here the Security Service of Ukraine reported that it had exposed two Russian agents in the Odessa region who were "leaking" enemy information needed to strike at a nitrate storage facility in one of the Ukrainian seaports.
Meanwhile, the security decision hit Ukrainian business. Recall that when the ports of Greater Odessa were unblocked, importers quickly reoriented from the ports of the Danube and other points to "deep water" and increased the tonnage of the fleet transporting fertilizers.
According to the information agency "Infoindustry", in 6 months of 2025 Ukraine imported 189.5 thousand tons of ammonium nitrate, of which 92 thousand tons were imported through the ports. Last year, 1.4 million tons of nitrogen fertilizers were imported to Ukraine.
And business also began to invest in infrastructure. Thus, the GOL company has built two warehouses at the DP World TIS Pivdennyi terminal, where more than 30 thousand tons of fertilizers can be stored. The importer of nitrogen fertilizers "Kaspit Trade" operates a terminal in the same Pivdennyi, has installed a packaging line there and is able to store up to 10 thousand tons of packaged fertilizers. The logistics company TEUS has installed a machine for packaging fertilizers in big bags in the port of Chornomorsk.
Therefore, now companies have to urgently review logistics. In particular, TEUS has proposed as an operational solution to supply ammonium nitrate by rail from the port of Galati, where big bags with fertilizers are reloaded into gondola cars for delivery throughout Ukraine.
"This route will provide farmers with stable supplies and minimize risks to the economy. We continue to work on adaptive logistics solutions to support Ukrainian farmers in times of uncertainty," says the founder and directorTEUS company Dmitry Kazanin.
According to the director and owner of GROSSDORF Andriy Khalyavka, the alternative to sea import is limited. And land logistics through Poland and Bulgaria do not have sufficient volumes and flexibility.
"Due to the ban on the import of ammonia-based fertilizers into the territorial waters and ports of Ukraine, the agricultural sector has found itself facing a serious challenge. This is not only about financial losses, but also about the issue of national food security, which requires urgent and effective solutions," Kazanin adds in turn.
"Restrictions on the import of such fertilizers lead to a shortage, rising prices and reduced availability during critical periods. In 2024, the agricultural sector provided more than $ 24.5 billion. foreign exchange earnings, and its stability is a strategically important issue for the entire country," the CTS interlocutor explains.
Domestic production is not yet able to cover demand, analysts say. Thus, "Infoindustria" notes that factories in Ukraine are not even operating at half capacity. In 6 months, 344 thousand tons of ammonium nitrate were produced. Meanwhile, the volume of the nitrogen fertilizer market in Ukraine exceeds 3 million tons annually.
If the ban on the import of nitrate through the sea ports of Ukraine remains, then fertilizer prices may rise to record levels and the autumn sowing risks becoming "golden", - believes Andriy Khalyavka. He noted that the restriction of sea imports means the loss of the cheapest fertilizer supply channel from countries such as Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan or Georgia.
"Salt is a market indicator. Its rise in price will inevitably entail an increase in prices for all nitrogen fertilizers: urea, CAS, ammonium sulfate. For the agrarian, this means a significant increase in the cost of production. Given the current prices for grain, many farmers will find themselves faced with a difficult choice: either work at zero or minus, or reduce fertilizer application rates, which will directly affect future yields," says Khalyavka.
And according to the calculations of the general director of the Ukrainian Club of Agrarian Business (UCAB), Oleg Khomenko, if the restrictions remain until the end of the year, the deficit of fertilizers on the Ukrainian market may reach 20%.
Therefore, there are proposals, in particular, to jointly develop mechanisms for safe imports with the military. This, for example, is raid transshipment or "other less risky methods."
Market participants say that suppliers are raising prices by 20–100 euros per ton. The owner of "Caspite Trade" Yevgeny Vorobyov predicts that the price of nitrogen fertilizers will increase by at least 10% from the current cost, which is 30-60 euros per ton.
Nevertheless, the spokesman for the Navy, Dmytro Pletenchuk, said that the ban will be in effect "until there are significant changes in the security situation." He added that it is necessary to protect other civilian vessels using the Ukrainian corridor. So, as they write in large letters on the superstructures of merchant ships, Safety first - safety above all.