The bulk carrier PUMA (Cayman Islands) left the Odesa seaport this morning and is now heading to the Bosporus through the established corridor of ship traffic. The vessel is loaded with 16,000 tonnes of metal and 14,000 tonnes of rapeseed.
The bulk carrier called at the Odesa seaport on 19 February 2022 and could not leave the port due to the outbreak of hostilities and the closure of the relevant areas of the Black Sea.
The corridor defined by the navigational order of the Ukrainian Navy is primarily used to evacuate vessels that were in the Ukrainian ports of Chornomorsk, Odesa and Pivdennyi at the time of the full-scale invasion.
Given the blocking of the Grain Initiative and the growing global demand for Ukrainian products, Ukraine is considering using it for civilian vessels carrying non-military cargo, including grain, mainly to Africa and Asia.
Since 15 August, four vessels have already used the temporary corridor. The container vessel JOSEPH SCHULTE, bulk carriers PRIMUS and ANNA-THERESA along with OCEAN COURTESY sailed through the corridor on 16, 27 August and 1 September respectively.