UKRAINE – Nibulon, one of Ukraine’s largest grain exporters, announced on May 29 a large-scale modernization initiative to enhance its grain elevator network.
The comprehensive overhaul will encompass automation, service unification, and mechanisms to ensure stringent quality standards across the entire network.
Additionally, storage capacities are set to expand significantly at the Khmilnyk branch in the Vinnytsia region, AK Vradiivskyi Ltd., the Kolosivskyi elevator, and the company’s transshipment terminal in the Mykolaiv region.
Valeriy Reutsoi, Nibulon’s director for elevator operations, emphasized the critical role of the elevator sector in agribusiness.
“The elevator sector is the heart of agribusiness, and the fate of the grain heading for export depends on its proper operation,” he said. “Only honest and transparent partnerships produce results: volumes are growing. We need to invest in modernization, progress, and raise the level of services so that all processes run smoothly and optimally in terms of time and effort.”
At the Khmilnyk facility, Nibulon plans to invest US$3.9 million to install new transport equipment and construct four operational silos.
AK Vradiivskyi Ltd. will see an initial investment of U$800,000, doubling its capacity and revamping the receipts and shipments scheme to handle multiple crops simultaneously, thereby reducing waiting times for agricultural producers.
The Kolosivskyi elevator will undergo a US$265,000 reconstruction, doubling its grain receipts and shipment productivity.
Meanwhile, the Mykolaiv transshipment terminal will benefit from a US$720,000 investment to construct a new gallery.
This addition will facilitate the receipt of cargoes from water transport and their subsequent transshipment onto rail transport for delivery to the Bessarabska branch.
Amid Russian forces’ blockade of the Mykolaiv port hub, this upgrade is expected to significantly reduce logistics costs for shipments to the Izmail ports.
Nibulon, ranked among the 20 largest companies in Ukraine, was exporting nearly 4 million tonnes of grain annually before the Russian invasion in February 2022.
Although exports plummeted in the early stages of the war, the company’s shipments have since rebounded. Nibulon projects exports between 3.2 million and 3.4 million tonnes for the current marketing year.
“Nibulon is demonstrating a recovery in export volumes during 2022-2024 and is regaining market share,” the company stated.
This recovery is attributed to development of alternative channels through a Danube port and the effective use of Black Sea port opportunities.
Vladimir Slavinsky, Nibulon’s commercial manager, highlighted the importance of the Danube River, which now accounts for 70% of the company’s exports.
The modernization efforts come in the wake of the tragic death of Nibulon’s longtime owner and CEO, Oleksiy Vadatursky, and his wife, Raisa Vadatursky, during a bombing of Mykolaiv by Russian forces on July 31, 2022.
Following this event, their son, Andriy Vadatursky, took over the company’s leadership.
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