Today the Black Sea Commercial Sea Port (MTP "Chornomorsk") is one of the flagships of the domestic transshipment of import and export cargo. It is also familiar to Odessa residents as a city-forming enterprise, from which one of the most significant industrial cities of the region originates. The current Chernomorsk (formerly Ilyichevsk) owes its port as the foundation and the main source of the well-being of its inhabitants. It is not just that, year after year, the city is actively being built up with modern residential complexes and is building up its social infrastructure. The port will play a progressive role in its development for a long time to come.Brief history of construction and development of the port "Chornomorsk". Investment and completed projects
Brief history of construction and development of the port "Chornomorsk"
The starting point for the creation of a full-fledged commercial port, and later a city, was a decree of the Soviet government of 1949. This decree approved a plan for the construction of a shipyard and a nearby village for workers on the right bank of the mouth of the Sukhoi estuary. Subsequently, the Ovidiopol regional executive committee allocated land for the construction of an industrial facility and a workers' town. Already in 1952 the settlement acquired the official name "Ilyichevsk".Early years: start of port construction and commissioning
Preparations for the commissioning of the first cargo terminals of the seaport were begun in Ilyichevsk in 1956. At that time, the leadership of the Soviet Union and the Ukrainian SSR were betting on ensuring stable foreign trade. The decisive role in the sale of export products of the mining industry, metallurgy and agriculture was assigned to sea freight.After the preparation and approval of the project documentation, by a direct decree of the head of the Black Sea Shipping Company dated October 25, 1957, the construction of a port at the mouth of the Sukhoi Estuary was initiated. The decree consolidated the procedure for the formation and coordination of the main structural units of the future complex. In addition, it served as a starting point in the formation of the staffing table and laid the foundation for the development of the first transshipment plan for the next year.
The key stages of construction were:
- December 1957 A cut of the sandy spit of the Sukhoi estuary to connect with the sea.
- Summer g 1958 . Completion of the arrangement of the first 336 m of the berth edge, installation of 6 portal cranes.
- 1958 g August . Mooring of the first ship, motor ship "Ukraine", for loading and unloading operations.
Port development in the 1960s
Already the second half of 1958 was marked by tangible results. The port of Chernomorsk (then still Ilyichevsk) managed to handle 335 thousand tons of cargo in this short period of time. In the bulk, these were bulk materials unloaded in bulk:
- dry building materials (sand, pebbles, crushed stone, cement);
- roundwood;
- coal.
The second half of the 60s was marked by an increase not only in volumes, but also in the range of cargo handled. In addition to export of raw materials, domestic ships began to actively supply equipment and machine tools, cars, special equipment for the construction and agricultural industry abroad. Among the imports were cargoes of such valuable products as jute fiber, clothing, footwear, spices, caustic soda, cotton, coffee and tea.
The period of operation of the Illichivsk port in the 1970s
A little more than ten years after its foundation, the port of Ilyichevsk is undergoing serious modernization. In 1972, the first automated system with port equipment was launched. Following it, in 1976, the time for another innovation comes - the first container terminal starts operating, designed to handle up to 120 thousand containers per year.In October 1978, the port began to serve freight ferry services: the international ferry route Ilyichevsk - Varna was launched. Up to 4 ferries simultaneously ran on it, on which, in the total mass, up to 108 railway cars were placed. The effective throughput capacity of this ferry made it possible to transport up to 6 million tons of cargo annually.
Late Soviet period in the history of the cargo port of Chernomorsk
The early 80s were marked for the port operator by the launch of the only complex at that time in the Ukrainian SSR for the staffing of RO-RO class vessels. RO-RO ferries, or as they are now called rollers, are a class of cargo ships designed to transport cargo of impressive dimensions. Loading of holds in them is performed horizontally. Rollers transport mainly machines and industrial equipment: special equipment, passenger vehicles, railway wagons, etc.
The loading platform of the Ilyichevsk port for working with rollers at the time of commissioning was equipped with a berth with a length of 280 m. Additionally, a warehouse was provided that could accommodate up to 5,000 vehicles.
Later, in 1987, an internal base for the repair of sea containers was opened on the territory of the port. At the same time, the reconstruction of berths No. 1, 2 was organized along with the associated technological and storage sites. The aim of the renovation was to put into operation the newest terminal for handling 20-foot TEU- containers. The planned throughput of the terminal was supposed to provide transshipment of up to 300 thousand containers per year.
The port of Chernomorsk in the 90s and the first years of independent Ukraine
The economic recession of the early 90s slowed down the implementation of the planned plans for the arrangement of the container terminal, but did not cancel it. In September 1995, the first stage of the new production site was put into operation. At that time, the container terminal was serviced by 2 berth and 3 rear loaders with a carrying capacity of 45 tons.The direction of ferry transportation and grain transshipment was developing no less effectively. In 1996, a ferry line was launched in the direction of Ilyichevsk - Poti. The following year, 1997, the port of "Chornomorsk" launched one of the first projects implemented through private investment. It was a complex for a grain terminal, designed to handle up to 2.5 million tons of cargo per year.
The project aimed at ensuring the transshipment of general cargo of mineral fertilizers turned out to be timely and effective. A separate terminal for work with them was built at the beginning of 1998. The initial productivity of the complex was 1.3 million tons of mineral fertilizers per year. Later, the port workers managed to bring the terminal to an indicator of 2.5 million tons due to modernization in 2000.
An important aspect that expanded the functionality of the Ilyichevsk port was the completion of the construction of berth No. 29 for transshipment of liquefied gas in January 2002. Along the way, in the same year, it was possible to expand the capacity of the grain terminal, completing its second stage. As a result, the port was able to expand the transshipment of cereals and seeds to 5 million tons per year.
As of the beginning of 2021, MTP Chornomorsk handled about 24 million tons of useful cargo at its berths. Including:
- 13.33 million tons of grain
- 1.43 million tons of bulk (including 1.33 million tons of vegetable oils);
- 4.47 million tons of commercial goods.
Investment projects implemented in recent years
Investments from private business have been and remain a significant factor supporting the efficient performance and high industrial standards of the port of Chornomorsk during the 30 years of Ukraine's independence. In total, several hundred million dollars were allocated for infrastructure development, modernization of the technical base and dredging of the Chornomorsk Sea Port for the specified period.As illustrative examples of public-private partnership (PPP), it is worth mentioning the Risoil and Transgrainterminal terminals based in the port of Illichivsk . Among the significant infrastructure projects of recent times is a set of measures to deepen the bottom of the operating water area and its passage channel.
Risoil - combined elevator terminal
This facility is part of the RISOIL SA agro-industrial group based in Switzerland. The first works on the construction of the technology park began in June 2014. Since 2016, the company has commissioned the first stage of a grain terminal and a tank farm for storage and transshipment of vegetable oils.
The total cargo traffic of the enterprise in 2020 amounted to 234 thousand tons. The management of Risoil sets a strategic goal in the form of an annual transshipment of about 2 million tons of grain and 1.5 million tons of liquid cargo. Currently, the complex is installing new pumping and compressor equipment to work with oil. In 2019, the company completed the construction of 8 new silos, creating a reserve for temporary storage of 150 thousand m 3 of grain.
In May 2020. Risoyl bought the power of "Bokonti Ukraine" for maritime transshipment of ore in n Horta "Black Sea" . At the moment, the company's specialists are actively developing a new direction of cargo transportation. Risoil Ore managers are considering the nearest plans for the development of export / import of ore materials. The forecasted transshipment volume may amount to 3 million tons per year in the near future.
Construction of an additional grain terminal "Kernel" (2016–2020)
Among the most urgent projects within the framework of PPP, it is worth noting the plan of the agricultural holding "Kernel" for the construction of a new grain terminal on the territory of the port of "Chornomorsk". We are talking about the "Transgreinterminal" facility, which will supplement the transshipment capacities of the existing grain complex "Transbalkerterminal". According to the company's strategy, due to the launch of Transgrainterminal, the total transshipment volumes will reach 8.8 million tons of grain per year.The project provides for parallel work in 2 directions. The USPA will be engaged in dredging of a part of the port water area adjacent to the berth line No. 14-17 to a depth of 14-15 m. Construction of work sites and warehouse complexes remains with the Kernel holding. At the same time, the cost of capital investments from the USPA will amount to UAH 230 million, and from the investor's side - about UAH 3 billion. It is expected that the launch of this grain terminal in the port of Chornomorsk will create 250 new jobs.
Project for deepening the seabed of the Black Sea port
This large-scale project was launched on August 8, 2018.The contract for the work was signed by USPA officials together with representatives of the Chinese company CHEC in May 2018. According to him, the contractor from China undertook to deepen the passage in the area of the channel connecting the harbor with the sea, as well as the operating water area of the 1st bucket of the Sukhoi estuary.As of June 19, 2019, the bottom dredging work has been completed. Now the MTP "Chornomorsk" can receive cargo ships with a shrinkage of up to 14.5 m and a deadweight of up to 75 thousand tons. In addition, container ships carrying up to 8 thousand TEU units can enter and stand for unloading in the water area .
Current infrastructure for transshipment of goods in the port of Chernomorsk
The Black Sea Commercial Sea Port is now an actively developing and expanding industrial facility. With a total length of the coastline of 6 km, its berths receive on average about a hundred merchant ships every month. A complex system of internal infrastructure facilities is located on the territory of the port. It includes:- Shore loaders, gantry and floating cranes. The latter are used for handling bulky goods weighing up to 400 tons.
- Areas equipped for temporary warehouses. Area internal open storage area is 575 thousand m. 2 , closed - 27 thousand m. 2
- Access roads for railways and vehicles. The port has 5 checkpoints for cars and 6 railways. Railway tracks on the territory of the port allow placing up to 1,300 wagons per day for cargo operations.
- Overpasses and product pipelines. At the Black Sea Fuel Terminal, lines have been laid for receiving and loading tankers of commercial oil, fuel oil and light oil products. The complex for transshipment of liquefied gases serves pipelines for pumping liquid propane, butane and their mixture.
- Administrative, industrial and amenity buildings of the structural divisions of the port.
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