Ukrzaliznytsia is Ukraine's state-owned railway company. Its cars ferry aid from Europe to the front lines and return carrying wounded soldiers. The railway is the backbone of the domestic economy and international trade: its freight lines sustain Ukraine's embattled industry in the east, ship cargo throughout the country and carry crucial grain exports to the border.
Russia's anti-rail strategy targets three areas: near Odessa it aims to stop export cargo reaching Black Sea ports; in the northern Sumy and Chernihiv regions it targets passenger trains to make those areas uninhabitable; and in Donetsk it bombards bridges, locomotives and electricity substations to sever the region from Ukraine. Attacks intensified sharply in the second half of 2025, using cheaper, more accurate versions of Iran's Shahed kamikaze drones.
In the first nine months of 2025 the once profitable company made a loss of $172m. Freight volumes have halved from about 315m to 160m tonnes a year. Exports to Russia are banned. Most coal mines are occupied by Russia. Industrial plants have been damaged or destroyed. Farms are landmined. Diesel prices have risen and electricity costs have more than doubled due to Russia's efforts to knock out Ukraine's power grid.
Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's prime minister, said Ukrzaliznytsia had received $310m in ad hoc funds from the state budget in 2025, and would get another $382m in 2026. The company has more than $1bn of debt in Eurobonds, most due in 2026, and is negotiating with bondholders to restructure.
The company has proposed a two-phase price rise totalling 41% for freight customers, arguing that prices have not kept up with rising costs. Businesses have lobbied against the plan. Metinvest Group, Ukraine's biggest private exporter, warned that more operations would close if prices rise. Mauro Longobardo, CEO of ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, said business customers should be treated as partners rather than forced to cover losses on passenger transport.
Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, head of the company, says the Russian anti-rail strategy will not succeed: "We cannot stop for a second. If we lose electricity, then we use diesel. If not diesel, then trains combined with buses. One way or another, we must keep the country connected."
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