The war in Ukraine adversely impacted certain river shipping companies in Romania’s easternmost Tulcea County, as they were left without qualified navigation personnel, because they are unable to provide salaries similar to those offered by shipowning companies in the neighboring country, write Agerpres.

There was already a shortage of inland navigation personnel before the war, but the conflict in Ukraine has worsened the situation.

„The war in Ukraine caused very serious issues related to the certified inland navigation personnel. Considering that the freight fees have increased sharply, they are very well paid for transporting grain and, of course, fuels. I’ll give you an example, a Danube riverboat captain can make 3,500 euros a month net, plus a Ukraine risk bonus. The way we negotiated the contract with the Transport Ministry, we cannot support such salaries for the navigation personnel,” executive director of Navrom Delta SA Nicolae Chichi told AGERPRES.

He also explains that another problem with finding certified personnel is the situation at the Romanian Center for the Training and Development of Naval Transport Personnel (CERONAV), the institute that trains these workers.

„Certified personnel means captain, helmsman, sailor, chief engineer. You can’t just get them off the street and that’s an issue. There is now European legislation in place for their certification and CERONAV is fully booked. Schedules are not that easy. There are reserved classes, the lecturers are not so many, the war took everyone by surprise,” Nicolae Chichi details.

According to him, the company under his management pays a ship captain a monthly salary of up to 1,200 euros and needs three helmsmen and a captain.

Navrom Delta SA is the only company that meets the government requirements for carrying out the regular transport of goods and passengers in the Danube Reserve.

About 10,000 people live in the Danube Delta, many of them with low incomes.