Ukrzaliznytsia is demonstrating a positive trend in the recovery of passenger transportation, despite the challenging conditions of wartime, constant shelling of infrastructure, and risks to the company’s employees. Over the past year, 65.7 million passengers utilized railway transport services, which is 1 million more compared to 2023. Thus, for the second consecutive year, an increase in passenger flow has been observed after a significant decline in 2022, when, due to the full-scale invasion by Russia, transportation dropped to 57.4 million people.
This is reported by Finway
Dynamics of Passenger Transportation and Financial Results
Before the start of the full-scale war, Ukrzaliznytsia transported over 150 million passengers annually. The average figure from 2016 to 2019 was 161 million people. In 2020, there was a sharp decline to 68.3 million passengers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2022, due to hostilities. Despite the challenges, the railway remained the primary means of evacuating the population: in 2022 alone, at least 4 million evacuated citizens used trains.
According to last year’s results, the company’s net financial result was negative, with a loss of ₴2.71 billion. In comparison, in 2023, the company reported a profit of ₴5 billion. In the first year of the pandemic, Ukrzaliznytsia’s losses reached nearly ₴12 billion, and in 2022, ₴9.6 billion. The main reason for the losses remains the tariffs: passenger transportation in Ukraine does not cover costs, so they are subsidized by freight transportation.
Payments on Eurobonds Amid Liquidity Shortages
Notably, Ukrzaliznytsia has promised to make coupon payments on July 9 and 15 for eurobonds worth $900 million maturing in 2026 and 2028, despite worsening market conditions and liquidity shortages.
The company confirmed its intention to fulfill its financial obligations to eurobond holders maturing in 2026 and 2028 by making the corresponding coupon payments in July. This is occurring even against the backdrop of a challenging macroeconomic situation and increasing liquidity shortages, indicating Ukrzaliznytsia’s commitment to maintaining investor trust and stability in financial markets.