News / Stranded MSC box ship leaves port of Odessa after 18 months

Port of Odessa. © Ddcoral Dreamstime.com

Containerships trapped in the port of Odessa since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last February may finally have a route out – but hopes of trade returning are slim.

On Wednesday, the Ukrainian authorities defied threats of Russian attacks on civilian shipping in the Black Sea, and allowed MSC’s 9,400 teu Hong Kong-flagged Joseph Schulte to depart, with a Ukrainian crew.

Last month, Russia stepped up its attacks on Ukraine’s shipping infrastructure with multiple drone strikes against Danube river ports close to the Romanian border.

BPG Shipping director Gennadiy Ivanov told the UK FT: “Ukraine does not have any another options, and everyone knows that. There is a lot of grain that needs exporting, but the Danube can’t cope with it all.”

He said that if the attempt to get the ship clear worked, more vessels would follow the route.

But there have been some suggestions that there may be some progress on negotiations to restart the grain deal and allow some ships to flow through the port of Odessa, but it is unlikely Russia will officially extend the access to containerships – increasingly used in moving Ukrainian grain.

Odessa-based consultancy Informall BG’s Daniil Melnychenko said: “The Russians cannot inspect them and claim they might have weapons on board.

But he added: “What the ship leaving means at this moment is that other vessels stuck in the big Odessa ports since the war began now have a chance to finally leave.

“With MSC facilitating lots of Russian cargo, especially at the port of Novorossiysk, the Russians would not really trouble its vessels, and then Turkish-flag ships would be next to escape.”

And he said: “The movement of the Joseph Schulte suggests that certain negotiations are in the works, which may lead to the blockade being lifted and the resumption of the grain deal.”

However, Mr Melnychenko told The Loadstar he saw many reasons any negotiations may not be finalised, not least of which would be Russian demands for sanctions to be lifted.

Meanwhile, carriers and crews are left very few options to contend with Russian actions on the Black Sea, as there are “no proper political or physical response” to dissuade Russian forces from forcing vessels away from Ukrainian waters towards Bulgarian and Romanian coasts, in contravention of IMO rules.