Three major Russian grain terminals on the Black Sea have stopped accepting grain delivered by trucks due to the risk of drone attacks, Reuters reported on July 29, citing industry sources. The terminals — KSK, Novorossiysk Grain Terminal (NGT), and ZTKT in Taman — together have a combined capacity of about 20 million tonnes of grain per year, roughly 40% of Russia's total annual grain exports of around 50 million tonnes.
The Taman terminal, which relies exclusively on truck deliveries, has effectively halted operations. The other two terminals, NGT and KSK, received about one-third of their grain by truck, with the rest arriving by rail. Rail deliveries to those terminals continue, but railcars heading to Novorossiysk are now only being cleared from the Southern Federal District.
The restrictions follow a broader disruption to shipping in the Sea of Azov. On July 10, Russian authorities imposed limits on vessel passage through the Kerch Strait. The port of Kavkaz, used to transship grain from small to large vessels, was closed shortly afterward. Since July 22, nighttime navigation has been banned in Novorossiysk due to the threat of drone attacks.
The number of grain carriers willing to enter Russian Black Sea ports has dropped sharply. “Risks have increased, there are fewer brave and reckless people,” one industry source told Reuters.
Russian wheat exports in July fell to 1.5 million tonnes, the lowest since 2017, according to estimates from the agricultural consultancy SovEcon. That is one-third less than in July 2025 and half the average July volume over the past five years.
Russian authorities are discussing redirecting grain to Baltic ports, which are currently accepting shipments without restrictions. Another option under consideration is a route via the Caspian Sea, traditionally used for deliveries to Iran, but market participants said there has been no surge in shipments from that direction since mid-July.