Ukrzaliznytsia's plans to increase freight tariffs by 30% from August may not only increase the burden on business, but also aggravate the financial problems of the carrier itself. Forbes came to this conclusion after analyzing the positions of the largest Ukrainian shippers and the proposed tariff reform..

As the publication notes, the key risk is that shifting losses from passenger transportation onto industry could lead to a reduction in production and traffic volumes. As a result, Ukrzaliznytsia will lose part of its cargo base, which will again necessitate an increase in tariffs to compensate for lost revenues.

In particular, the Metinvest company, which provides about a quarter of all freight transportation of Ukrzaliznytsia, warns about this danger.. The company believes that a further increase in the tariff burden will trigger a chain reaction: a reduction in production will lead to a reduction in transportation, and this, in turn, will increase financial pressure on the carrier.

In a comment to the publication, the agricultural company Kernel announced its readiness to review logistics models and partially transfer cargo to road transport. And ArcelorMittal Krivoy Rog warns that an increase in tariffs could significantly reduce the volume of rail transportation due to the loss of competitiveness of products.

According to the publication, during the public discussion the business will offer an alternative approach to solving the financial problems of the state carrier. Among the key proposals are the refusal to increase tariffs by 30%, limiting possible indexation to a level that will ensure break-even operation of the cargo segment, and the need to provide additional funds from the state budget to cover the deficit in passenger traffic.

Earlier, Ukrainian industrial, transport and sectoral associations appealed to Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko and the head of the Presidential Office Kirill Budanov with an appeal to prevent an unreasonable increase in freight tariffs of Ukrzaliznytsia in 2026: they reported that an increase of 30% would lead to a loss of UAH 96 billion of GDP per year, reducing the cargo base.

In turn, large agricultural enterprises also called on the government to refrain from increasing freight tariffs, because this will lead to a transition to motor transport. This, in turn, will reduce the cargo base of UZ and accelerate the destruction of Ukrainian roads.