Sulina Canal capacity must be expanded to develop Ukraine’s Danube ports – expert

Vitalii Nikula, Director of Izmail Sea Commercial Port, made the comment to Ukrinform during the Rebuilding Ukraine Forum in Bucharest. “We need certain agreements to increase the capacity of the channels connecting the Danube and the Black Sea. First of all, this is the Sulina Canal, which now plays one of the key roles and is the central entry route for vessels from the Black Sea to the Danube cluster,” Nikula said. He noted the canal allows passage for vessels with a draft of up to seven meters, carrying both export and import cargoes such as fertilizers, construction materials and other goods needed in Ukraine. The main problem remains limited capacity, with work under way at the level of the relevant ministries in Ukraine and Romania.