Employers’ Federation of Transport of Ukraine (EFTU) has addressed Prime Minister of Ukraine, Minister of Infrastructure, and First Vice Minister of Infrastructure with regard to a possibility of converging port dues rates in Ukraine to those in comparable foreign ports in order to ensure competitiveness of Ukrainian exports in the crisis situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The corresponding letter has been sent stating, in particular, that the pandemic may produce long-term impact on Ukrainian economy and result in considerable decrease of exports and substantial fall of GDP. In such conditions an essential factor able to affect the export potential retaining and securing competitiveness of national enterprises is reduction of port dues’ rates that would allow significantly easing the burden on Ukrainian manufacturers – exporters, and granting them a chance to offer their products at international markets by acceptable prices.
It is pointed out, that now a ship’s call in Ukrainian ports costs higher by 100% – 450% in comparison with overseas ports. The excessively high level of port dues has negative impact on competitiveness of Ukrainian ports and impairs development of both the ports and economy of Ukraine on the whole.
EFTU in its address reminds that just a couple of years ago a Port Dues Calculation Techniques were elaborated jointly with experts from World Bank. According to those Techniques, reduction of rates was envisaged up to 60%. In the medium-term prospect that presumed serious economic effect on account of cargoes attracted into Ukrainian ports. The cut of port dues from 01 January 2018 by 20% enabled Ukrainian ports do increase their throughput by 21%, and reach the level of 160M t in 2019. The potential of port dues reduction remains on the level of 40-60%. Further cut of the dues by 20% as EFTU experts believe promises to expect up to annual 190M t enlargement of the throughput in 2021-2025.
EFTU notes that in the situation of coronavirus pandemic various countries decrease the load on business with the purpose of supporting their economies. In this view, EFTU requests prime minister to charge Ministry of Infrastructure with the task of preparing a proposal concerned with the port dues reduction by 20% as a minimum from 01 May 2020, which would enable Ukraine to approximate its dues to the level of comparable ports of the world.
https://cfts.org.ua/news/2020/03/31/frtu_prosit_pravitelstvo_i_miu_snizit_portovye_sbory_v_ukraine_v_usloviyakh_krizisa_58059