USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) purchased and delivered a powerful grain loader to Kernel, an agricultural exporter, to support grain exports from Ukraine.
This equipment will help in the transshipment of grain at the (grain) elevator before they are loaded into wagons/maxi bags. The loader transports 1,150 tonnes of grain per working day.
“Recently, during one of the attacks on our facilities, the company lost a similar grain loader due to the damage caused by UAV debris. So, this equipment will allow us to restore and strengthen our production and transport capacity,” said Yurii Kizlevych, Head of Transshipment and Fleet at Kernel.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion and Russia’s blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, the company has been facing challenges in exporting agricultural products by sea and developing alternative export routes. An additional challenge is the shelling and destruction of port infrastructure by the Russian army. One of the ways to overcome these challenges therefore is to develop its river terminal in Reni in cooperation with USAID ERA.
The project also involves Nibulon and Grain Alliance, which will develop export logistics at river terminals in Izmail (Ukraine) and Čierna nad Tisou (Slovakia). The total investment in the development of Ukraine’s export logistics will amount to over USD 44 million. USAID will provide $8 million, and more than $36 million in total will come from three Ukrainian business partners. The joint financing is expected to increase grain transportation capacity by 3.35 million tons per year.
Kernel is Ukraine’s largest grain producer and exporter and a leader in the global sunflower oil market. In fiscal year 2022, the company supplied 10 million tons of Ukrainian agricultural products to the global market. The company accounts for about 8% of global sunflower oil exports. Kernel supplies its products to more than 80 countries.
This assistance to agricultural producers and infrastructure companies is part of the Agriculture Resilience Initiative – Ukraine(AGRI-Ukraine), implemented by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). It aims to help Ukraine increase its capacity to produce, store, transport, and export grain.