The bulker Razoni today became the first vessel to carry grain from a blocked Ukrainian port as part of a United Nations-brokered deal.
The Turkish Ministry of National Defense, which is part of the four-way operation between Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and the UN, announced early on Monday on Twitter that there was an agreement for the vessel to leave Odesa port at 08.30 local time.
Vessel trackers showed the 29,300-dwt Razoni (built 1996) underway off Odesa at 08.15 GMT.
The Sierra Leone-flag bulker is scheduled to carry its load of grain to Lebanon.
“Following the first ship, the other ships are planned to be transferred within the framework of the determined corridors and procedures,” the Turkish defence ministry said.
The UN had hoped the first ships could move from Ukraine via a safe corridor through the mined Black Sea as early as Friday. However, technical reasons prevented the first shipment at the weekend.
Ships are due to leave Odesa as well as Chornomorsk and Yuzhny, three ports blocked since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February.
Under the plan, ships travelling into Ukrainian ports will be inspected in Istanbul, with the UN overseeing the loading to ensure weapons are not smuggled for use in the war.
The deal, signed off last month, aims to ship more than 20m tonnes of stored grain to allow silos to be cleared for new harvests. Prices have soared and the UN said the grain from Ukraine is needed to alleviate global hunger.
