On October 9, 10, 2008, Odessa hosted the second International Black Sea Container Summit 2008. Organizers — PORTS OF UKRAINE Publishing House and the Centre for Information and Analytics BLACKSEATRANS. The summit was held under the aegis of Ministry of Transport and Communications of Ukraine. The summit was thought to be a review of ‘container forces’ of the Black Sea region, which, according to IAC BLACKSEATRANS, over the last six years has demonstrated the highest growth rates in container carriages — by 40.1 % (in TEU) annually on an average (ports of Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania). By an estimation of the British company ‘Drewry Shipping Consultants’, there were no higher growth rates worldwide those years.

It is no coincidence that the summit already the second year successively gathered representatives of the worldwide most significant shipping container companies (Maersk Line, Mediterranean Shipping Company, CMA CGM, "K" Line, NYK Group); global container terminal operators (Hutchison Port Holdings, Dubai Port World, HPC Hamburg Port Consulting GmbH, APM Terminals, National Container Company); heads and representatives of the seaports of Ilyichevsk, Odessa, Berdyansk, Constantsa, Poti, Taman; heads of stevedore companies like TRANSINVESTSERVICE, METALSUKRAIN, HPC Ukraine, UKRTRANSCONTAINER; shipping companies like Arkas and Royal Boskalis; manufacturers of container handling equipment (Kalmar, Konecranes, Fantuzzi – Reggiane); transport and forwarding companies (KUEHNE+NAGEL, United Transport Holding, ILYICHEVSKVNESHTRANS, Fordon Logistic Company, Global Container Service, Intercommerce-Multimodal, С.М.Т. Ltd) and the others. All in all there were 150 people from 15 countries of the world (Ukraine, Russia, Georgia, Romania, the Netherlands, Germany, Estonia, Great Britain, Switzerland, Finland, Austria, Turkey, Malta, France, Moldova). Among most vital topics of the summit touched in 21 reports — main directions of the Black Sea container cargo flows, competition for transit, analysis of projected container terminals on the Black Sea and those under construction, forecasts of regional demand for terminal capacities, issues of investment in the development of transport and port infrastructure, ways of acceleration of advancement of containers through terminals, etc. The delegates of the last year's summit were witnesses of the official opening of a new container terminal operated by UKRTRANSCONTAINER Company in Ilyichevsk with its annual throughput capacity of 850,000 TEU. This year they became participants of the presentation of a new Brooklyn-Kiev Company’s container terminal (300,000 TEU a year), that is scheduled to be put into service in Odessa port in Nove,ber 2008. They familiarized also with two functioning container terminals in Odessa port operated by the companies HPC Ukraine and METALSUKRAIN. The general sponsor of the summit — Brooklyn-Kiev Company. Sponsors — National Container Company (Russia), the companies UKRTRANSCONTAINER, TRANSINVESTSERVICE, HPC Ukraine, SOLVO LTD, CJSC Konecranes Ukraine, METALSUKRAIN, YUZHTEKHSERVICE, Odessa Commercial Sea Port. Boom of container carriages on the Black Sea is going on, as it was mentioned at the summit, but the lagging behind coastal transport infrastructure practically in all container ports of the region creates lots of problems, considerably complicating the development of container transportations. It concerns Ukraine as well for the reason that it

It touches also Ukraine where they started increasing terminal container capacities with the significant delay. In the country they have not created, despite all statements of the authorities, normal conditions for attraction of investments into development of the port economy, and the customs regulations practically make impossible the adjustment of transshipment system at container terminals.

The participants of the summit expressed their concern regarding the variety of obstacles for further development of container carriages through Ukraine. It was decided to prepare the appeal to the government of Ukraine with the list of measures which could help to improve the situation.

Venue: Odessa Hotel, 6-a, Primorskaya St,
Odessa, Ukraine.