Klaipeda port says shipping Ukrainian grain via Poland is inefficient

After the first train with Ukrainian grain has reached Klaipeda's stevedoring company Bega, the Lithuanian seaport says that shipments through Poland are too small for it to use its full potential, noting that efficient logistics are only possible via Belarus, the daily Verslo Zinios reported on Thursday.

The port could handle around 10 million tons of grain if it were transported through Belarus, compared to just about 1 million tons via Poland.

Klaipeda port companies say the pilot shipment showed that transporting grain via Poland is possible, but not viable.

Algis Latakas, CEO of the Klaipeda State Seaport Authority, says the route still needs to be improved considerably, adding that a massive flow is only possible via Belarus.

"The logical position is to discuss a humanitarian corridor through Belarus," Latakas told Verslo Zinios. "Belarus plays a decisive role in the issue of transporting Ukrainian grain through the port of Klaipeda,

"We could then handle around 6 million tons without doing anything extra. And if we moved things around to make more space in warehouses, it could be 8 million to 9 million," he said.

Bega CEO Laimonas Rimkus had a positive opinion about the pilot shipment, but also said that transporting Ukrainian grain via Belarus would be better.

"Imagine handling 1,800 tons a day... We can load 26,000 tons of agricultural crops into containers per day. This is our commercial mode that is beneficial," he said.