From August 18 to 24, 2026, the Akkon RMS TEAM container ship burns in the Black Sea on its way after a drone attack. in Novorossiysk, and in the port of Yeysk, a fire is being extinguished at an enterprise after an attack by a UAV. Rusagrotrans estimates August wheat exports at 1.8 million tons, SovEcon — at 2.2 million. Both forecasts are close to the minimum since 2010. Meanwhile, the first container ship New New Shipping is in Murmansk, and the FEU rate is from Of China to Moscow in July, it amounted to $9531.
RMS TEAM in the Black Sea and the fire in the port of Yeysk
On August 21, Turkish Akkon Lines reported a drone attack on the RMS TEAM container ship in the Black Sea. The ship was built in 2004, the flag of Barbados. The crew left the ship. A nearby vessel took off 11 people, one sailor was missing, search services were notified. After the evacuation, the fire engulfed the living quarters, the engine room and the container area. According to the line's assessment, the ship and cargo are at risk of going into constructive total destruction. Prior to the AIS strike , Novorossiysk was the destination. Departure from Turkish Gemlik on August 12, entry into Eregli, crossing into the Black Sea. The details were shared with PortNews and InfraNews.
On August 22, the governor of the Krasnodar Territory, Veniamin Kondratiev, announced that the enterprise in the port of Yeysk had come under attack by UAVs: a fire had broken out from the wreckage, and it was being extinguished. Interfax confirms the fall of debris at the enterprise within the boundaries of the port and the emergency regime in the Yeisk district. During the week, two incidents occurred in the south : a container ship was on fire on the approach to Novorossiysk , and a port facility in Yeysk caught fire. Against the background of problems with Novorossiysk grain, another incident occurred in the region.
Wheat export forecasts are close to the lowest since 2010
On August 19, the Rusagrotrans analytical center lowered its forecast for wheat exports from Russia in August from 3.1 to 1.8 million tons. The decrease is due to restrictions on shipments from the Black Sea ports. The new estimate is 2.5 times lower than last year's August figure and is close to the level of August 2010, when 1.6 million tons were exported. The figure is reported by Interfax.
On August 23, SovEcon lowered its August forecast by another 1 million tons to 2.2 million. This is also the minimum since 2010. A year ago in August it was 4.5 million, the five—year average was 5 million. The assessment assumes that some of the Black Sea terminals will still be operational by the end of the month. If this does not happen, the volume will be below 2.2 million. Both forecasts are related to the operation of the southern terminals: Rusagrotrans produces 1.8 million tons, SovEcon — 2.2 million.
The first NNSL in Murmansk and the plans of the line in Petersburg
On the night of August 19, the container ship of the Chinese New New Shipping Line moored at the pier of the Murmansk Commercial Seaport. MMTP is included in The Port Alliance; for the port, this is the first reception of containers delivered via the Northern Sea Route. There were 500 containers with car accessories on board. Governor Andrey Chibis recalled the agreement with the line: the entry and volume of the batch corresponded to its parameters. The call was confirmed by Interfax and PortNews.
On the eve of August 18, NNSL CEO Ke Jin spoke about the company's plans at the Rostki forum in Kazan. NNSL plans to introduce six Arctic-class container ships with a capacity of 4.8 thousand TEU. By the summer navigation of 2027, the company expects to increase the volume of shipments along the Arctic route to 1.2 million tons. Four vessels are planned to be commissioned in October 2026 on a specialized line from China in Saint-Petersburg. Together With the existing capacities, the line is scheduled to launch two flights per month from October for delivery components of Chinese car factories in St. Petersburg, Moscow, and the Kaliningrad region. Two more vessels are planned to be commissioned in June 2027. So far, the call to Murmansk remains a one-time visit: there were 500 containers on board. The company plans to launch regular two flights a month to St. Petersburg. since October.
The index is $9531 per FEU and Korean NSR flight
On August 19, Delo Group of Companies published the July indexes. The average cost of transporting a 40-foot container from Of China flights to Moscow increased by 5.8% by June and amounted to $9531 based on FOB-FOT on four routes. The cheapest route was through the Far East — $8574 per FEU. Delivery cost $9,600 through railway border crossings, $9,228 through the Large Port of St. Petersburg, and Novorossiysk — $10,723. Competitiveness Index St. Petersburg reached 0.35 in July and overtook Novorossiysk. The Far East, with an index of 0.72 , bypassed land crossings for the first time since the beginning of the year. The container market of the Russian Federation in July decreased by 2%, to 656 thousand TEU, containerization — 6.6%. The review was published by PortNews and InfraNews.
On August 22, another container ship set off along the NSR. PanStar Acro left Busan for Europe via the NSR. This is the first test flight of a South Korean container ship in the Arctic and the first passage of a South Korean vessel on this route since 2016. According to the schedule, the vessel will pass the Northern Sea Route from August 30 to September 7, then she will call at Philixstowe, Rotterdam, Gdansk and Hamburg and return to Busan on October 5. The entire flight will take about 45 days. PanStar bought the vessel from HMM; its capacity is 2,758 TEU. There are chemicals, used cars, auto parts and empty containers on board. The flight was reported by Interfax and PortNews.
Disruptions to ships and port sites continue in the south, forecasts for August wheat exports have approached their lowest level since 2010, and the route through Novorossiysk turned out to be the most expensive in the July Delo Group index. Against this background, St. Petersburg, the Far East and the Northern Sea Route are considered as alternative destinations. For cargo that has not yet been shipped, it is worth comparing the cost and timing of each route in advance.