EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes: European Commission approves €126 million Romanian State aid scheme to support ports facing increased trade flows

On 11 January, the European Commission approved, under EU State aid rules, a  €126 million Romanian scheme to support investments in ports facing increased trade flows after Russia’s war against Ukraine.

The measure will be partly funded through EU Cohesion funds, supporting investments in the field of environment and transport infrastructure (TEN-T), and will contribute to the functioning of the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes  by facilitating the trade flows in and out of Ukraine.

“This €126 million scheme will allow Romania to reduce bottlenecks created by the sudden surge in goods arriving in the Danube and Black Sea coast ports. The aid will support port operators to process and store queuing goods, thereby reducing the blockade caused by Russia’s war against Ukraine,” said Margrethe Vestager, European Commission Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy.

Between March 2022 and November 2023, over 58 million tonnes of grain, oilseeds, and related products have left Ukraine through the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes. They have enabled the export of around 60% of Ukraine’s grain since the start of the war. 

In total, the Solidarity Lanes have allowed Ukraine to export about 112 million tonnes of goods, and to import around 40 million tonnes of goods it needs: from military and humanitarian aid, to fuel and other products.

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