MOSCOW, August 24. /TASS/. Up to 10,000 tonnes of grain were shipped at the port of Berdyansk, in the Zaporozhye region, over the past month, the port’s head Vladimir Stelmachenko announced on Wednesday.

"Over the past month, we shipped almost 10,000 tonnes. These are the first steps," he said in a video posted on the city’s Telegram channel.

He specified that the port needs to ship at least 40,000 tonnes monthly in order to become a self-financing entity.

"We have reached an initial understanding about how much and what we need (to ensure the port’s operation at full capacity - TASS). We will form special working groups that will promptly develop plans for joint activities, we expect to receive funding and direct supplies of equipment from manufacturers," he stressed.

Earlier, the mayor of the city Alexander Saulenko said in an interview with TASS that the port of Berdyansk is still operating at 15-20% of its capacity due to faulty equipment.

To date, the Russian armed forces have liberated more than 70% of the Zaporozhye region, including Berdyansk. The administrative center of the region, the city of Zaporozhye, remains under the control of Kiev. Due to this the governing agencies have been temporarily accommodated in Melitopol.