The Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company will build its own fleet of barges - preparations for creating a non-self-propelled vessel from the structures of donor vessels are already underway at the Kilia Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Plant.

Dmytro Moskalenko, the head of the UDP, announced this.

"The first two lighter (a type of barge) that act as donors have been raised on the slip. Defects have been identified, repairs have begun with metal replacement," he wrote.

After the collapse of the Soviet system of lighter transportation, hundreds of lighters remained unclaimed due to the economic impracticality of their use. But based on lighters, you can create barges with a large carrying capacity.

Currently, there are 86 lighters left in the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company. Some are leased as so-called "spacers" between ships and the pier. But most are rotting, extracting funds from the UDP that we pay for the anchor tax or spend on emergency repairs.

In the next 2-3 years, the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company plans to close the lighters issue completely: all vessels still in satisfactory technical condition will be transformed into barges. As a result, UDP should receive 5-6 more barge caravans.

"Economic calculations carried out by our analysts indicate that investments in constructing SLG barges are absolutely justified. Especially since we carry out the conversion at our own production facility," Moskalenko assured.

"One way or another, the construction of new barges has started. As I have already mentioned, the first two lighters are already preparing for a "new life", 7 more lighters have been selected for rebuilding and will also be moved to the factory in time," he summarized.