The Baltic has historically occupied a major place in Russia's foreign trade, and stable markets have developed in Europe for our traditional exports (oil, petroleum products, gas, coal, mineral fertilizers, timber, metals and other goods). The need to develop Russian ports in the Baltic is determined both by the volume of foreign trade traffic and its structure, and by the economic and political situation in this region.

A container terminal with a capacity of 1.5 million tons per year, a refrigerated complex and other infrastructure facilities are being built in the port of St. Petersburg. Construction of an oil terminal is also underway: a territory has been formed, several tanks have been installed, and the pier has been reconstructed, which makes it possible to transship up to 11.5 million tons of oil products right now. Once the work is completed, the terminal will handle up to 5.5 million tons of petroleum products per year.

But there are other Russian ports on the Baltic Sea besides St. Petersburg. Of course, they are not so large, but their development will help not only increase the volume of maritime transport in Russia, but also significantly reduce the load on the St. Petersburg port.

Feasibility studies for the development of the port of Vysotsk have been completed, including the construction of new berths, railway and road approaches for a prospective cargo turnover of up to 5.3 million tons.

Work is underway on the construction of a cargo area in Lomonosov for transshipment of containers, general and other cargo.

However, the largest facilities in the Baltic basin are 3 new ports on the coast of the Gulf of Finland - a port in Batareinaya Bay for transhipment of petroleum products (15 million tons), an oil loading port in the Primorsk area (45 million tons) and a dry cargo port in the Ust-Luga area (35 million tons).

The new port in Batareinaya Bay is located on the left bank of the Gulf of Finland, 60 km from St. Petersburg. A feasibility study for the first stage of construction for an estimated cargo turnover of 7.5 million tons was developed and approved. Preparatory work has begun. The berth front is an oil pier with two berths for receiving vessels with a carrying capacity of 16.5 - 40 thousand tons. The tank farm is designed for 400 thousand m3.

A feasibility study for the construction of a new seaport in the Ust-Luga area, located in the south-eastern part of the Gulf of Finland, 100 km from St. Petersburg, has been developed and approved.

In accordance with the order of the Government of the Russian Federation, the construction of a coal terminal with a throughput capacity of 8 million tons per year is prioritized.

The terminal is designed for unloading coal from railway cars, short-term storage of cargo and loading onto ships. The complex includes a 268 m long berth, an approach channel, car layers, warehouse areas, reloading mechanisms, etc.

Currently, work is underway to form the territory, dredge, and drive a sheet piling wall. At the same time, projects for the subsequent construction of a complex for transshipment of ferrous and non-ferrous metals and mineral fertilizers are being developed. Negotiations are underway with interested investors.

The new port in the Primorsk region is located 130 km from St. Petersburg and 60 km from Vyborg. A feasibility study for the first stage of construction has been developed: it is planned to build a complex for reloading petroleum products with a capacity of 4.5 million tons at the expense of Russian and foreign investors. Commissioning of the facility is planned for 1999.

To transship crude oil through this port, a resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation adopted a decision on the design, construction and operation of a unified Baltic pipeline system from the village of Kharyaga (Komi Republic) to the coast of the Gulf of Finland as part of the existing main oil pipelines in the direction of Usa-Ukhta-Yaroslavl-Kirishi, which are being built again sections of this system and the oil loading terminal of the port complex. That is, the southern option for transporting oil from the Timan-Pechora fields has been adopted.

The northern option of transporting oil and building a port in the Arctic region with transportation by sea vessels directly from the areas of these fields is under study.

A feasibility study has been developed for the feasibility of constructing a railway-automobile ferry crossing in the direction of Ust-Luga - Kaliningrad - European ports. However, due to lack of funds for design work, further developments have been suspended.

After the collapse of the USSR, the St. Petersburg port became very congested, as it remained the only Russian port on the Baltic Sea. Therefore, the port cannot cope with the tasks assigned to it. To relieve the load on the St. Petersburg port, as well as to develop trade with European countries, new ports are being built and developed on the Baltic Sea. But so far they are not as large as St. Petersburg, and cannot completely remove the load from this port.

Modern maritime transport is an important part of the Russian transport system. In terms of cargo turnover (about 8% in 1995), it ranks third, behind railway and pipeline transport. It plays a leading role in transport services in the regions of the Far East and Far North. The importance of maritime transport in Russia's foreign trade is great. It accounts for 73% of cargo shipments and more than 90% of international cargo turnover. Small cabotage prevails in inland maritime transport.

In many technical and economic indicators, sea transport is superior to other types: the largest single carrying capacity, practically unlimited capacity of sea routes, relatively small specific capital investments, low energy consumption for transporting 1 ton of cargo, low cost. At the same time, maritime transport also has significant disadvantages: dependence on natural conditions, the need to create a complex port facility, and limited use in direct sea communications.

Scientific and technological progress in maritime transport significantly affects its geography: it changes the directions, composition and magnitude of cargo flows, stimulates the construction of new seaports and berths, and the development of new routes in inland seas and the World Ocean.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russia was left with 8 shipping companies and 37 ports with a total cargo processing capacity of up to 163 million tons per year, of which 148 million tons are in the Baltic and Northern basins. Average age Russian ships are 17 years old, which is significantly worse than the corresponding characteristics of the world merchant fleet. There are only four large shipyards left in the country, three of which are located in St. Petersburg (Severnaya, Admiralteyskaya and Baltic Shipyard). Only 55% of the deadweight of the Union's transport fleet became Russian property, including 47.6% of the dry cargo fleet. Russia's sea transportation needs are currently estimated at 175 million tons per year, while the country's fleet is capable of transporting approximately 100 million tons. The remaining seaports on Russian territory can handle only 62% of Russian cargo, including 95% of coastal cargo and 60% export-import. To transport incoming imported food and export goods, Russia uses the ports of neighboring countries: Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia.

The main sea basins of the country differ from each other in the economic specifics of the economic regions gravitating towards them and in the natural conditions of navigation.

Azov-Black Sea basin serves freight and passenger transportation in Russia, Ukraine and Georgia, as well as trade relations with foreign countries. The region of export-import gravity covers over 75 countries. More than half of the transportation occurs in foreign trade. The main place in exports is occupied by oil and petroleum products, as well as ores, metals, and cement. The structure of imported goods includes grain, non-ferrous metal ores, metal, sugar, machinery and equipment, tropical fruits and vegetables, pipes for gas pipelines.

Thanks to the resort location of the basin, passenger transportation has greatly developed (up to 30 million people per year). The most significant passenger flows go along the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus and Crimea. On the Black Sea, Russia still has the ports of Novorossiysk, Tuapse and Sochi. Novorossiysk is located in the ice-free Tsemes Bay. The port specializes in foreign trade transportation. The structure of cargo turnover is dominated by liquid cargo. In addition, a significant amount of timber and cement is sent, and grain, sugar, metal, and ore are received. In terms of cargo turnover, it is the largest sea trade port. Tuapse specializes in the removal of liquid cargo. Mainly foreign trade transportation is served. The port also ships ore and coal, and receives construction materials, sugar, metal, grain, machinery and equipment. Sochi has a significant cargo and passenger turnover.

IN Baltic basin geographical location and good transport connections determined the dominant role of foreign trade transportation (over 90% of cargo turnover). Small cabotage is small and is dominated by the transportation of mineral building materials. Transportation of goods to points on the Arctic coast of our country is somewhat more important. Large cabotage is well developed (in the Barents, White and Black Seas). Ships in this basin serve several international passenger lines. Passenger transportation in small cabotage has not become widespread due to the developed network of land routes.

Of the eight Baltic ports of the former USSR, Russia has three whose equipment does not allow for modern cargo transportation. The largest Russian port in the Baltic is St. Petersburg, processing 12-15 million tons of cargo per year. About 90% of the port's cargo turnover comes from export-import transportation. Departures are dominated by wood, oil and chemical cargo, and metal, while arrivals are dominated by grain, sugar, metal, and building materials. The port of St. Petersburg is one of the largest passenger ports in the Baltic, serving mainly foreign tourists. Annual passenger traffic - 100 thousand people.

Another highly mechanized port of the Baltic basin is Vyborg. Its cargo turnover consists of local building materials, exported wood and imported metal and paper. Coal, paper, industrial cargo are exported through the port of Kaliningrad, metal, sugar, grain, and some types of equipment are imported. To relieve the congestion of the St. Petersburg port on the Baltic, a powerful port complex is being built in the Luga Bay of the Gulf of Finland. The Ust-Luga port will be three times more powerful than the St. Petersburg port, its cargo turnover with cargo handling will be 35 million tons.

Caspian Sea mainly used for transport between Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Foreign trade communications are carried out only with Iran and occupy a small share of cargo turnover. Coastal shipping predominates in the Caspian basin. The bulk of them are oil and petroleum products. Other bulk cargo includes construction materials, salt, chemical products, grain, fish, cotton, and wool. In the basin, along with sea vessels, mixed (“river-sea”) navigation vessels are widely used. The main Russian ports are Astrakhan and Makhachkala.

Passenger flights of sea vessels from Baku to Makhachkala and Astrakhan are organized in the Caspian basin.

Far Eastern sea basin is of great economic importance for the development of economic relations in the coastal regions of the Far East. The Far Eastern basin includes the Bering, Okhotsk, and Japan seas, as well as the eastern part of the Northern Sea Route (Laptev Sea, East Siberian and Chukchi Seas).

The main feature of the Far Eastern basin is the numerous intra- and inter-district low-capacity cargo flows. Coastal transport predominates: 85% of the total volume of transport in the basin. Large cabotage is small, its share in transportation is about 1%. The main cargo flows are formed in the ports of Primorye and go to Kamchatka, Sakhalin and the Magadan region. Timber cargo is sent from the ports of Vladivostok, Nakhodka, Vanino to the northern regions. Oil cargo from Vladivostok goes to Nagaevo, the ports of Sakhalin, Kamchatka and Chukotka. Sakhalin coal is sent to various ports in the Far East.

Foreign trade maritime transport includes timber, coal, oil cargo, and ores. More than 80% of overseas traffic occurs in Japan. In foreign trade transportation, imports are inferior to exports.

Main import cargoes: grain, sugar, metal, cement, chemical cargoes, machinery and equipment.

The Far Eastern basin ranks second in Russia in terms of passenger transportation, behind the Azov-Black Sea basin. There are regular cargo and passenger routes to Chukotka, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, as well as local passenger lines: Vladivostok - Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Vladivostok - Korsakov, Vladivostok - Kholmsk, Vladivostok - Anadyr - Providence port. A special place is occupied by international passenger lines: Nakhodka - Japan, Nakhodka - Hong Kong.

The sea railway crossing Vanino - Kholmsk is of great economic importance for the region, thanks to which it became possible to transport goods year-round and rhythmically between Sakhalin and the mainland.

The most important ports of the Far Eastern basin: Vladivostok, Nakhodka, Vanino, Magadan, Kholmsk, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. They have modern ship handling technology and a powerful icebreaker fleet.

Vladivostok is located in the Golden Horn Bay and serves as a supply base for port points on the Pacific coast and the eastern sector of the Arctic. In the structure of cargo turnover, more than 60% is made up of coastal transportation of oil cargo, coal, machinery, equipment, and food products. Exports are dominated by timber, coal, and oil cargo, while imports are dominated by grain, sugar, and metals. The annual cargo turnover of the port is about 10 million tons. Vladivostok is connected with the ports of Sakhalin and Kamchatka by 12 coastal passenger lines.

Nakhodka is a commercial port of international importance. The main cargo flows are directed to the Arctic regions and Kamchatka. Export-import transportation accounts for 2/3 of cargo turnover. The export of goods exceeds their import. Oil cargo, coal, cement, timber, pig iron, potassium salts, ore, building materials, canned crab and fish, grain, paper, sugar, and rice pass through the port. Every year the port ships more than 10 million tons of cargo and 60 thousand passengers. The port of Vanino is located in the bay of the same name in the Gulf of Tatar. Designed for transshipment of cargo (metal, machinery, equipment, food products, animal feed, etc.) from railway to sea vessels with subsequent delivery to Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands and the coastal areas of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk. The main share of cargo turnover falls on the ferry crossing Vanino - Kholmsk.

Kholmsk is the largest port in the Sakhalin region. Export-import and cabotage cargo is processed here. The port's cargo turnover is 4.5 million tons.

Magadan is a port of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, serving remote areas of the Magadan region and the Sakha Republic using road transport. The port mainly (90% of cargo turnover) receives petroleum products, coal, equipment for the mining industry, machinery, metal, and food products.

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is located in the Petropavlovsk Bay of the Avacha Bay. The main cargo traffic to Kamchatka and back is sent through this port: coal, oil products, construction materials, machinery, etc. Imports prevail over exports. Mainly fish products are exported.

Not far from Nakhodka, a new port, Vostochny, has been created, the cargo turnover of which is 14-16 million tons. This is a highly mechanized transport enterprise. Coastal and export-import cargo passes through it.

There are mainland ports in the basin - Posiet, Sovetskaya Gavan, Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Okhotsk, Anadyr, Provideniya, Egvekinot; Sakhalin ports - Korsakov, Uglegorsk, Nevelsk, as well as ports on the Kuril Islands: Kurilsk, Severo-Kurilsk and Yuzhno-Kurilsk.

Northern Basin- the area most rapid growth sea ​​transportation. It includes the White, Barents and Kara seas of the Arctic Ocean. On navy The Northern Basin is tasked with transport services for the territory of the Far North, Arctic islands and ensuring foreign trade relations. Coastal transportation, the share of which is about 40%, is carried out between points on the Arctic coast and the islands of the Arctic Ocean. The cargo includes ore, building materials, coal, timber, petroleum products, metal, equipment, machinery, consumer and food products.

The area of ​​gravity for export-import cargo includes many countries in Europe and North America. Through the seaports of the basin, metal, grain cargo, coal, and sugar are imported, and apatite concentrate, wood, ore, and coal are exported.

The most important port in the basin is Murmansk. This is the ice-free western port of the Northern Sea Route. The main cargo turnover of Murmansk comes from overseas transportation, with exports significantly exceeding imports. The port's cargo turnover is more than 7 million tons.

The sea trade port of Arkhangelsk is located in the Northern Dvina delta. The port's cargo turnover is over 5 million tons. Coal, building materials, petroleum products, metal, food cargo are sent along coastal lines, and coal and wood are received. Mainly timber and timber products are exported; metals are included in imports. The port provides local passenger transportation for up to 40 thousand people. in year. In the Northern basin, Onega, Mezen, Naryan-Mar, Igarka, Dudinka, Belomorsk and Kandalaksha are also of great importance.

The prospects for maritime transport are associated with the further development of transportation in the Arctic. The development of the territory is based on the Siberian rivers and seas of the Arctic Ocean and is connected with the Northern Sea Route. A new stage in the development of the Northern Sea Route began with the appearance of nuclear icebreakers on this route, which makes it possible to extend the period of Arctic navigation and ensure year-round shipping in the western sector to the port of Dudinka, and in the Far East to the port of Egvekinot in Chukotka. Large-scale projects have been developed for the accelerated development of the Russian merchant fleet, the technical re-equipment of the icebreaker and transport fleet, the reconstruction of ports and berths, and the introduction of a lighter transportation system.

As noted, in terms of the total volume of cargo handled, the ports of the Baltic Basin occupy first place among the ports of other sea basins. They will retain their leadership until 2030. Proximity to the most developed industrial regions of Russia and at the same time to European countries contributes to the fact that flows of the entire range of cargo pass through these ports.

There are seven Russian sea ports in the basin: the Big Port of St. Petersburg, Primorsk, Vysotsk, Vyborg, Ust-Luga, Kaliningrad and the Passenger Port of St. Petersburg. The Baltic ports are mainly occupied by the transshipment of foreign trade and transit cargo. Coastal cargo accounts for less than 1% of their cargo turnover.

In 2011, the ports of the basin processed 185.7 million tons of cargo (34.7% of the total cargo turnover of Russian ports), including 3.0 million tons of coastal cargo (9.5% of the total volume of coastal cargo transshipment). The ports of the basin handle 37.8% of liquid and 30.7% of dry cargo of the total cargo turnover of all ports of the country.

The ports of the Baltic basin are the end points of the Russian sections of the international transport corridors “East-West” and “North-South”. If future international transit cargo turnover is ensured along these corridors (this will be mainly cargo in containers), the total cargo turnover of these ports will increase significantly. Already in the short term, the main cargo flows will go to the ports of Ust-Luga (mainly dry cargo and partially liquid cargo) and Primorsk (liquid cargo).

Meanwhile, the largest port of the Baltic basin, St. Petersburg, is limited by urban buildings and highways and does not have the opportunity to expand its territory. Therefore, the development of the port of St. Petersburg is carried out at the expense of outports (Bronka, Lomonosov, Kotlin Island).

A special feature of the Baltic basin is also the presence of the enclave Kaliningrad region, communication with which is carried out using the sea railway crossing Ust-Luga - Baltiysk - German ports.

Azov-Black Sea basin

In terms of total cargo turnover of sea ports, the Azov-Black Sea basin ranks second after the Baltic basin. There are twelve Russian sea ports in the basin. The ports of the Azov-Black Sea basin are the main elements of railway-sea transport hubs.

In 2014, the ports of the basin processed 125.4 million tons of cargo (23.4% of the total cargo turnover of Russian ports), including 15.1 million tons of cabotage cargo (47.6% of the total volume of cabotage cargo transshipment in the country ). The basin ports handle 18.1% of liquid and 30.3% of dry cargo of the total turnover of these types of cargo of all ports of the country.

The ports of the basin can be divided into three groups. The first includes the ports of Vostochny, Vanino, Vladivostok, Nakhodka and Posyet, connected to the country’s transport system by railway approaches or pipelines. These five ports handle more than 70% of the cargo passing through the basin. The second includes ports connected by pipelines to the offshore fields of Sakhalin - Prigorodnoye, De-Kastri, and serving the needs of one company. Their cargo turnover accounts for more than 20% of the cargo turnover of the ports of the basin. The third group includes the remaining 15 ports, which are located in areas where there are no land communications, and which currently provide transshipment of cargo to support livelihoods settlements, in which they are located, with the immediate surroundings. Their capacity is used by 10-50%, and there are no prerequisites for increasing the cargo base and increasing cargo turnover. The port of Zarubino stands apart, which has railway and road access, a favorable location, opportunities for development and almost completely unused capacity.

The ports of the basin are divided into three unequal groups. The first includes ports located on the Black Sea coast, ice-free, capable of receiving large-tonnage sea vessels and having the potential for further development. The second group includes the ports of the Azov Sea. Freezing, shallow water, usually located in cities and without prospects for development associated with an increase in cargo turnover. The third group consists of ports located in Black Sea resort cities.

The bulk of the basin's cargo is processed in the ports of Novorossiysk (67%), Tuapse (11%) and Kavkaz (5%). The remaining 9 ports in the basin process only 17% of cargo. As capacities are commissioned in the new Black Sea port of Taman, the share of Azov ports in the basin’s cargo turnover will further decline.

A special burden will fall on the sea ports of the basin (primarily the port of Sochi) during the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. On the coast of the Black and Azov Seas, it is planned to develop recreation areas, sports, resort and health facilities. Seaports play an important role in the development of maritime tourism.

The work of domestic maritime transport in the Azov-Black Sea basin is complicated by Turkey’s opposition to the passage of Russian large-capacity vessels through the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits. Delays of ships in the Black Sea straits lead to serious financial losses. This indirectly affects the work of seaports.

Moscow, October 10 - "Vesti.Ekonomika". Transneft bought out Summa's share in the joint venture that controls the Novorossiysk commercial seaport. How, the company increased its share in the NCSP group to 60.62%.

Novorossiysk sea trade port is one of the largest sea ports in Russia.

"The Board of Directors was informed of the implementation of its previously adopted decision to increase the stake in the NCSP group owned by Transneft PJSC to 60.62%. The transaction was closed by acquiring 100% of the shares in the joint venture Novoport Holding, owned on parity terms by Transneft PJSC "and the Summa group and controlled 50.1% of NCSP," says a message on the website of Transneft PJSC, published following a meeting of the board of directors.

Below we will talk about the 10 largest seaports in Russia.

1. Novorossiysk

Novorossiysk seaport is one of the largest ports of the Black Sea and the largest port of the Krasnodar Territory.

The record holder of Russian ports for the length of the berth line, reaching a length of 8.3 km.

The seaport is located on its north-eastern coast in the Novorossiysk or Tsemes Bay, which is ice-free and convenient for navigation.

Navigation in the port lasts all year round, although it may be interrupted in winter.

2. Ust-Luga

Ust-Luga is a sea trade port in the north-west of Russia, in the Leningrad region, in the Luga Bay of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea near the village of Ust-Luga.

Work began with the opening of a coal terminal in December 2001; the existing timber terminal at the mouth of the Luga River was included in the port.

Navigation conditions in this part of the Gulf of Finland allow for almost year-round operation of the port with a short period of ice support (the duration of navigation without the use of icebreakers in Luga Bay reaches 326 days a year).

3. Port Vostochny

Port Vostochny - Russian sea port federal significance in Wrangel Bay, Nakhodka Bay, Sea of ​​Japan.

In 1968, design and survey work began on the site of the future seaport. Construction began on December 16, 1970, in April 1971 it was declared an All-Union Komsomol shock construction project, and was under the control of the CPSU Central Committee.

It was planned to build 64 berths with a length of 15 km, for the workers of the new port it was planned to build a satellite city for 50 thousand inhabitants, the port’s cargo turnover was to be 40 million tons.

State control over ensuring the safety of navigation and order in the port is carried out by the federal government agency"Administration of the Vostochny seaport", headed by the captain of the Vostochny port.

4. Primorsk

The port of Primorsk is the largest Russian oil loading port on the Baltic Sea, the end point of the Baltic pipeline system. The port is located on the mainland of the Bjorkesund Strait in the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, 5 km southeast of the city of Primorsk.

The port is designed to serve tankers with a deadweight of up to 150 thousand tons, a length of up to 307 m, a width of 55 m and a draft of 15.5 m, that is, ships with a ship close to the maximum draft capable of entering the Baltic Sea from the ocean.

On the territory of the port there are 18 oil storage tanks with a capacity of 50 thousand tons, tanks for storing light oil products and several emergency discharge tanks.

5. "Big Port of St. Petersburg"

"Big Port of St. Petersburg" is a large seaport in the North-West of Russia. The port water area is 164.6 square meters. km, the length of the berth line is 31 km.

The port of St. Petersburg is located on the islands of the Neva River delta, in the Neva Bay in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea.

"Big Port of St. Petersburg" includes berths of sea trade, forestry, fishing and river ports, an oil terminal, shipbuilding, ship repair and other plants, a marine passenger terminal, a river passenger port, as well as berths of Kronstadt, Lomonosov, port points Gorskaya, Bronka.

6. Murmansk

Murmansk Sea Trade Port is a seaport located on the eastern shore of the Kola Bay of the Barents Sea, the largest transport enterprise in the city of Murmansk.

The Murmansk port consists of three parts: "Fishing Port", "Commercial Port" and "Passenger Port".

IN last years There is a tendency for the “Trading Port” to crowd out all others due to the increase in the export of coal and a number of other mineral resources, for the reception and storage of which Murmansk has the necessary infrastructure.

The supply of fish has decreased significantly, since it has become more profitable to export it rather than inside the country. In September 2015, during the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the enterprise, a port museum was opened.

7. "Port Caucasus"

The port is one of the largest passenger ports in Russia due to its ferry service to Crimea with a capacity of about 400 thousand passengers per year.

The port allows you to receive train ferries, which, in addition to Kerch, run between the port and Varna in Bulgaria.

The port is located on the Chushka Spit in the Kerch Strait, in the Temryuk region of the Krasnodar Territory of Russia.

8. Vanino

The Port of Vanino is a Russian seaport of federal significance in the deep-water Vanina Bay, the largest in the Khabarovsk Territory.

It is located on the northwestern shore of Vanina Bay in the Tatar Strait and on the Baikal-Amur Railway.

Navigation in the port is open all year round. In winter, when the bay's waters are covered with ice (from January to March), ships are escorted using icebreakers. The port operates 24 hours a day.

The commercial port has 22 cargo berths and piers with a total length of more than 3 km. They are part of four transshipment complexes and an oil loading terminal

9. Tuapse

The seaport of Tuapse is located on the Caucasian coast of the Black Sea at the top of Tuapse Bay, southeast of Cape Kodosh and includes areas of the water surface at the mouths of the Pauk and Tuapse rivers.

Currently, the seaport of Tuapse is a multi-purpose port, open for navigation all year round, operating around the clock, providing cargo operations with cargo, including dangerous goods of 3–5, 9 hazard classes, foreign trade transportation of oil and petroleum products, as well as bulk cargo (coal, ore etc.), general cargo, grain, mineral fertilizers and agricultural products.

10. Nakhodka

Port of Nakhodka is a Russian seaport of federal significance in Nakhodka Bay and on the northwestern coast of the Sea of ​​Japan.

It is part of Russia's largest port and transport hub on the Pacific Ocean, Vostochny - Nakhodka.

Includes universal marine and oil terminals in Nakhodka Bay, as well as fish terminals in Andreeva, Podyapolsky, Yuzhno-Morskaya, Gaydamak, Preobrazheniya, Moryak-Rybolov, Nazimova, Pyati Okhotnikov, Sokolovskaya bays, as well as at the mouth of the Oprichninka River.

Range of cargo: coal, oil products, containers, refrigerated cargo.

Baltic ports play an important role in the economies of countries with access to the Baltic Sea. It is through them that the main trade flows, so a lot depends on their modernity and infrastructure. In this article we will talk about the main ports in this direction.

Trade turnover situation

In recent years, the ports of the Baltic states, that is, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, have been experiencing better times. Their profitability, profits, and turnover are decreasing. Back in 2002, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he would do everything to ensure that all oil exported, without exception, went only through domestic ports, and not Baltic ports, as was the case at that time. Since then, this problem has been systematically solved.

The first step was taken back in 2002, when oil terminals were opened in Primorsk. But even under this condition, the statements of the head of state at that time seemed hardly feasible. After all, since Soviet times, the lion's share of oil and petroleum products went through the ports of Latvia. In total, about 30 million tons were exported annually.

At the moment the situation has changed radically. Already by 2015, all Baltic ports accounted for no more than 9 million tons of oil and petroleum products; in 2016, these figures dropped to 5 million tons, and in 2018 they practically disappeared. All oil cargo traffic was redirected exclusively to domestic ports, to improve the situation with the domestic economy, support employers and local infrastructure.

Baltic losses

Baltic ports have been losing Russian suppliers regularly since the 2000s. Domestic hydrocarbons were the first to leave there, which was facilitated by the implementation of such large infrastructure projects as “South” and “North”. Even then, the head of Transneft, Nikolai Tokarev, stated that the state had set the task of loading domestic ports to the maximum, since they had a surplus of capacity.

As a result, in a short time the total volume of transportation through pipelines was increased by one and a half million tons. At the same time, it was decided to transfer the capacities that were not used directly for crude oil to intensive pumping of petroleum products towards the Russian coast. As a result, as Tokarev noted, all Russian cargo flows from the Baltic ports were reoriented to Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk. First of all, Riga and Ventspils suffered from this.

The reorientation of Russian business to domestic capacities dealt a significant blow to the Baltic countries. Their economic well-being depended not least on the transit of Russian goods. The list of Baltic ports that suffered first was led by Latvian coastal cities, since Lithuanian ports still received a significant load from Belarusian cargo traffic, which was mainly sent to Klaipeda.

Expert assessments are confirmed by statistical data. Already at the beginning of 2016, the cargo turnover of the Freeport of Riga decreased by 11 and a half percent, Ventspils - by a quarter, and Tallinn - by 15 and a half percent. At the same time, Lithuanian Klaipeda even managed to demonstrate a certain growth - by almost 6 percent.

According to the Riga authorities alone, they were missing 40 million euros due to the loss of Russian cargo, which was very sensitive on a statewide scale. In general, cargo transit brings in about one billion dollars a year.

Capabilities and cargo turnover

It is worth noting that all this is happening in ports that for many years were designed for maximum load and large flow of goods. The total cargo turnover of the Baltic ports is impressive. In the three largest ports it is about 76 million tons per year.

The Freeport of Riga, located on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, handles a cargo turnover of 33.7 million tons. Through Klaipeda, which is considered the largest and most important transport center in Lithuania, about 24 million tons. Moreover, it is considered the northernmost of the entire Baltic Sea.

About 19 million tons per year pass through the port of Tallinn. This is the cargo turnover of the Baltic ports.

Domino effect

The refusal to transship through the ports of the Baltic states led to a drop in performance in other types of transportation. The volumes of Latvian railways have fallen by 20 percent, and this has a domino effect on the service sector. Employment is declining and unemployment is rising accordingly. According to experts, the loss of just one job in the transport sector entails the loss of two more full-time workers in the service sector.

Moreover, while Latvia suffered the most, the loss of oil flows did not affect Estonia and Lithuania as much. In Klaipeda, initially the transshipment volumes of Russian cargo did not amount to more than six percent of the total cargo turnover. Therefore, when it became known that Russia would no longer use the Baltic ports, no major losses were felt in Klaipeda. Moreover, oil and petroleum products have never been transported here.

The port in Tallinn has a so-called “fuel oil” specialization. At the same time, Transneft primarily exports light oil products. Therefore, the catastrophic drop in cargo turnover here is associated with a decrease in orders from partners in the European Union rather than with the influence of Russian business.

At the same time, Moscow’s decision to abandon the Baltic ports indirectly affected both Estonia and Lithuania. The fact is that after the decision to transfer the transit of petroleum products to Russian ports, competition between all Baltic ports in other segments of trade turnover sharply increased. So, according to the law of communicating vessels, this ultimately had an impact on everyone without exception.

European sanctions

Everyone began to solve these problems in their own way. Some, by introducing more attractive tariffs and improving the quality of work, others went to force their own population to pay for the anti-Russian course of Baltic politicians. This opinion, at least, is expressed by the majority of domestic political scientists.

This became especially noticeable after 2015, when the European Union introduced economic sanctions against Russian Federation. It is obvious that the well-being of the Baltic coastal cities largely depends on favorable relations between Russia and Europe. In this case, the sanctions began to influence the fact that the decline in transit and cargo turnover only increased.

Moreover, this was also affected by the fact that the Baltic countries themselves, as members of the EU, were forced to support the sanctions. A striking example is the Estonian icebreaker Botnica. After Estonia supported sanctions against the Russian Federation, he was unable to fulfill contracts concluded with Rosneft. As a result, his downtime in the port of Tallinn began to cost the state treasury a loss of 250 thousand euros every month.

Russian harbors

Against this background, cargo turnover in Russian ports is expected to increase every year. At the same time, the main increase comes through ports located on the Black Sea, which were the first to be used en masse. Southern coastal cities began to systematically take over the cargo turnover that existed between Russia and the European Union.

Domestic ports in the Baltic Sea also demonstrated outstanding results. For example, Ust-Luga is a port bypassing the Baltic states, into which large investments are being made; it can already compete with Tallinn harbor. Over ten years, its cargo turnover has increased 20 times, now amounting to almost 90 million tons per year.

Capacity of domestic ports

In recent years, the capacity of all domestic ports has been increasing. On average, 20 million tons per year. Such impressive results were achieved thanks to serious investments in their infrastructure. Every year they amounted to about 25 billion rubles. At the same time, it has always been especially noted that all projects are implemented within the framework of public-private partnerships, that is, for every ruble from the treasury there are two rubles of private investment.

It is worth noting that much has already been done in redirecting domestic coal, hydrocarbons and fertilizers to Russian harbors. At the same time, in other segments there is still big job.

Infrastructure development

An important role in this is played by Russia’s desire to develop its own infrastructure in this area. The scheme for container transportation through the Baltic ports, which included not only the ports, but also the Latvian Railway, no longer works.

The implementation of a project to create a customs warehouse that meets all modern requirements should deal another significant blow to the cargo transportation of these countries. The Phoenix company will do this work. It will appear in the large port of St. Petersburg, where two large customs warehouses with large capacities are already operating.

All these years, the ownership of Russian businesses in the Baltic ports has been systematically decreasing. At the moment it has been reduced to almost nothing.

Fight for China

Chinese transit remains an important issue for both Baltic and Russian ports. This is a tasty morsel that everyone wants to grab for themselves. Most of the cargo from China comes through container shipping, currently about half of this volume comes from the Baltic states.

In Tallinn, for example, they make up 80 percent of the total container turnover, in Riga - 60 percent, and in the Finnish port of Hamina-Kotka - about a third. Recently, the situation in this extremely highly profitable segment has become worse. Especially after the opening of the new Russian port of Bronka. It is planned that it will be able to redirect cargo from other Baltic ports to itself.

Container Shipping

It is noted that this will not be as easy as with raw materials. In recent years, the transport of containers and cars has decreased significantly, which was facilitated by imperfect Russian customs administration and more attractive conditions for transshipment and storage in foreign ports.

Russia expects to win competition for the transit of Chinese goods through the implementation of the New Silk Road project. According to experts, this is the only way to exclude Latvia from this chain. Much is already being done for this purpose, for example, a dry port has been equipped in the Kaliningrad region. It is being built in the Chernyakhovsk industrial park.

Dry port

With the help of this port in Chernyakhovsk there will be a real opportunity to transport cargo traveling from Asia to the European Union exclusively through Russian territory.

In Chernyakhovsk, containers will be reloaded from the Russian railway track to the European one. It is expected that traffic will be about 200 thousand cars per year. And this is only the first time. This is about six to seven trains every day. At the moment, work on creating the engineering infrastructure of this facility is already being actively completed.