Author Archives: Admin

Belousov Instructed to Design the Redirection of Exports to Asia along the Northern Sea Route

March 3 2023

The agencies were instructed to submit a report to the government by March 10 on the redirection of transportation of goods exported to the countries of the Asia-Pacific region (APR) to the Northern Sea Route in 2023-2024. This instruction is contained in the Minutes of the State Commission for the Arctic of February 10, presided by Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev. It was reported to Interfax by a source familiar with the text of the protocol prepared following the meeting of the State Commission.

The Ministry for the Development of the Far East and Arctic (MDFEA), together with “Rosatom”, MoT, MoF and the authorities of the Arkhangelsk and Murmansk regions, were instructed to design the plan, taking into account the transportation of goods from the seaports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk and the necessary state support measures to ensure the flow of goods, the source said.

In addition, MDFEA and “Rosatom” together with principal shippers, were instructed to submit proposals by March 31 on additional measures to ensure the achievement of the established KPIs for NSR cargo traffic in 2024, including in terms of domestic, export-import and transit traffic.

MoF together with MDFEA, “Rosatom” and VEB.RF, by March 1, must develop and submit for approval to the government a financial and economic model for the development of the NSR, providing for the plans of the principal shippers and the construction of icebreakers necessary to achieve target indicators of cargo turnover along the NSR.

Earlier, Mr. Trutnev who oversees the Arctic, noted: “The implementation of the NSR development plan is a very big job and very capacious in terms of money. Periodically, financing and timing issues arise at different nodes. We agreed that MoF, MDFEA, “Rosatom” and VEB.DV will create a unified NSR financial and economic model. I do not rule out that we will have to find new solutions in terms of financing these activities so that there is no shortage of financial resources anywhere. Maybe these are loans – we need to assess,” he said. According to him, the NSR financial model will apply to all projects: both those implemented by the state and private ones.

The source specified that the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT) and “Rosatom”, with the participation of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) and “Transmashholding” (TMH), must submit proposals by March 14 to create domestic high-power engines for Arctic-class ships. At the same time, MIT, MDFEA, the Ministry of Economic Development and MoF were instructed to define the creation of a specialized fund for the purpose of buying out Arctic-class ships for operation in the NSR waterways.

According to the source, the State Commission also discussed the readiness of the infrastructure of the Ob-Irtysh and Yenisei river basins to ensure the export transportation of coal, lumber, grain products. The relevant departments, “Russian Railways”, “Rosatom” and the governor of the Omsk region Alexander Burkov were instructed to submit proposals to the government on the volume of transportation of these goods via the NSR before July 1.

Also, “Rosatom”, MoT, MDFEA and “Russian Railways” should elaborate the issue of creating a cargo port in the village of Ust-Kara (Nenets Autonomous District) to serve the NSR with the construction of the Vorkuta – Ust-Kara railway line. A report on this issue must be submitted to the government by March 10.

Source: http://morvesti.ru/news/1679/101308/

Fesco Transport Group opens a subsidiary in Turkey

March 3 2023

The Fesco transport group has opened a subsidiary in Turkey to develop transport and logistics services in the region, the company’s press service reported.

“The Fesco Transport Group has opened a subsidiary in the Republic of Turkey to develop transport and logistics services in the region. The headquarters is located in Mersin. Fesco Turkey will provide a full range of transport and logistics services to customers in Turkey,” the report says.

The company’s activities will be aimed at organizing the delivery of project cargoes for enterprises under construction in Turkey and the countries of Central Asia in the energy, petrochemistry and gas chemistry sectors.

“The increased role of Turkey in trade with Russia allowed Fesco to significantly expand the range of its logistics services in the Black Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean last year. Seeing strong demand from both Turkish and Russian companies, we decided to open a subsidiary in the republic. This will strengthen the expansion of Fesco in the region,” said Andrey Severilov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fesco, whose words are quoted by the press service.

Source: http://morvesti.ru/news/1679/101309/ 

From Cyprus to Russia: Global Ports shareholders approved the change of the country of registration

March 2 2023

Global Ports Investments PLC announced the results of an extraordinary general meeting of its shareholders, which took place under the chairmanship of Artemis Tomaides.

The shareholders decided to approve the redomiciliation of the company from the Republic of Cyprus to the Russian Federation – Russky island of Primorsky Territory, as well as to appoint Albert Likholet to the post of general director in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation after changing the legal regime of the country of registration.

Global Ports Investments PLC is a leading operator of container terminals in the Russian market in terms of capacity and container cargo turnover.

Global Ports terminals are located in the Baltic and Far East, which are key regions of foreign trade cargo flows. Global Ports operates a network of five marine container terminals in Russia (Petrolesport, First Container Terminal, Ust-Luga Container Terminal and Moby Dik in the Baltic, and Vostochnaya Stevedoring Company in the Far East) and two in Finland (Multi-Link terminals in Helsinki and Kotka). Global Ports also owns the internal Yanino Logistic Park container terminal near St. Petersburg.

Source: http://morvesti.ru/news/1679/101290/ 

Australia and Japan to monitor illicit activities at sea

February 12 2023

From February to March, Australia will engage in monitoring and surveillance activities by aircraft against illicit maritime activities, including ship-to-ship transfers with the DPRK-flagged vessels.  For these purposes, the Kadena Air Base (US) in Japan will be used. 

According to the Foreign Ministry of Japan, it will be the eleventh time for such activities. The first monitoring of ships engaged in illicit operations, including bunkering, was conducted in 2018.

The Japan Coast Guard also conducts intelligence-gathering activities on ships suspected of violating UNSCRs, so Japan is working closely with other countries conducting such surveillance.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/342853/

FPV resident company for the first time shipped a grain consignment exceeding 10, 000 tons via the port of Zarubino (Primorsky Territory)

February 7 2023  

“Legendagro Logistics’ company, the resident of the Free Port of Vladivostok (FPV), for the first time loaded a ship lot weighing more than 10 thousand tons of corn in the port of Zarubino. The cargo goes to China and will arrive at the port of Qingdao in Shandong province within a few days, the press service of the Ministry for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic reports.

A consignment of corn was loaded onto a ship with a deadweight of 15.2 thousand tons by ”Sea Port in Troitsa Bay LLC” stevedoring company personnel. The process went on for 5 days – 2 thousand tons of grain per day, because of extremely cold temperature.

“The departure of the first ship loaded with 10 thousand tons of grain is an important milestone in the history of the port of Zarubino. Usually we loaded grain consignments of 3 to 5 thousand tons on smaller ships in this port. An increase in shipment volume could facilitate transportation from the ports of Primorye in general and double the volume of grain trade in 2023. The geography of deliveries is wide, and the volumes of export and import cargo passing through the Primorsky Territory to various cities of Russia and other countries are increasing. We hope that our project will help to significantly improve logistics in the Far Eastern Federal District and strengthen the position of Primorsky Territory, which is the center of transport communications,” said Mr. Dmitry Savenkov, Director of “Legendagro Logistics LLC”.

This company loaded and exported 49 sea vessels, or more than 200 thousand tons of grain and oilseeds, to China and South Korea in 2022. Deliveries took place at the ports of Zarubino and Sukhodol as well as from “Vladprom” sea terminal. According to the project manager, shipments from the port of Zarubino will increase in 2023.

To start providing freight forwarding services, “Legendagro Logistics” purchased and rented tractors, semi-trailers, hopper cars and four mobile ship loaders. Warehouse facilities capable of simultaneous storage of more than 38 thousand tons of grain have been built. In Ussuriysk, A special support & maintenance facility for grain trucks was created in Ussuriysk. Within five years, “Legendagro Logistics LLC” will invest 247.5 million rubles in the region’s economy.

According to official data, residents of the free port of Vladivostok are implementing more than 2.1 thousand investment projects, 384 of them have been successfully launched. Business has invested almost 347 billion rubles in the economy of the Far East, more than 40 thousand new jobs were created.

“Legendagro Logistics LLC” is part of the “Legendagro” Russian-Chinese group of companies, which is engaged in crop production, deep processing of oilseeds, trading and logistics, construction of elevators, sea and railway terminals, and trading operations. The group of companies is implementing a number of investment projects in the status of FPV and TASED resident, which are aimed at increasing the volume of production and export of agricultural products.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/342591/

Chukotka Port of Anyuisk Will Expand to Support the Largest Investment Project in the Region

January 30 2023  

Mr. Roman Kopin, Governor of the Chukotka Autonomous District discussed plans for the development of the river port in the village of Anyuisk with representatives of the “NTService” company, a resident of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.

The company is implementing a program to construct a port hub in the village of Anyuysk.  This hub will support the delivery of goods as part of the implementation of the largest investment project in the region – the “Baimsky GOK” (mining and processing facility) for the development of the Baimsky porphyry copper deposit in the Bilibinsky district of the Chukotka Autonomous District.

“The port has been expanded, reinforced with people and equipment,” Governor Roman Kopin said in his Telegram channel. According to the governor, “Chukotsnab” is preparing to renovate the tank farm in Anyuisk and to expand its capacity. This will make it possible to use the port of Anyuisk as a hub for the delivery of large volumes of fuel.

Source: https://www.korabel.ru/news/comments/chukotskiy_port_anyuysk_rasshiryayut_pod_dostavku_gruzov_dlya_krupneyshego_investproekta_regiona.html

Remarks. The construction of the Baim Mining Facility in Chukotka began in 2020. The Baimskoye deposit is the world’s largest in terms of gold (64.3 million ounces (2 million kg) and copper (23 million tons) reserves. The mining and processing facility will be launched by 2026, and will reach its design capacity by 2028. By this time, facility should produce 250,000 tons of copper and 400,000 ounces of gold per year.

FESCO diesel-electric ship Vasily Golovnin set off on a new Antarctic expedition

January 25 2023

According to FESCO, the ship left the port of Cape Town last week and is already on its way to the Indian research stations Bharati and Maitri.

The diesel-electric ship will deliver a team of Indian polar explorers, fuel and provisions there. It will also take out household and technical garbage from the stations. Another point on the route of Vasily Golovnin will be the Belgian station “Princess Elisabeth”. The voyage will last until April 2023. This is the second FESCO Antarctic expedition under a new five-year contract with the National Center for Polar and Oceanic Research of the Indian Ministry of Geosciences (NCPOR).

Earlier FESCO has repeatedly participated in government projects in Antarctica to supply research stations of the US, Australia, Great Britain, Chile and Argentina.

FESCO Transport Group is one of the largest private transport and logistics companies in Russia with assets in the field of port, railway and integrated logistics business. The Group owns the Vladivostok Commercial Sea Port, the Transgarant and Dalreftrans railway operators, and Russkaya Troika, the fitting platform operator. The Group operates dry terminal complexes in Novosibirsk, Khabarovsk and Tomsk, manages over 130,000 TEU, and has more than 10,000 fitting platforms. The fleet includes 23 transport vessels, which mainly carry out transportation on their own sea lines.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/341942/

A consortium led by India’s Adani Group completes the purchase of the port of Haifa in northern Israel

January 11 2023

A consortium led by India’s Adani Group has completed the purchase of the port of Haifa in northern Israel for 4 billion shekels ($1.15 billion), Reuters reported with reference to Israel’s Finance Ministry.

The sale of one of Israel’s main seaports took five years. The Israeli government has said it is selling its state-owned ports and building new private docks to lower costs and reduce waiting times for ships to unload.

About 99% of all goods enter and leave Israel by sea, and the modernization of ports is necessary to maintain economic growth, the authorities said. Israel announced in July that it would sell the port of Haifa, a major trading hub on the Mediterranean Sea, to winning bidders Adani Ports and local chemical and logistics group Gadot. China’s Shanghai International Ports Group (SIPG) opened a new port across the bay in Haifa last year. The presence of SIPG and Adani will boost Israel’s status as a regional trading hub, the agency said.

The largest multi-profile Indian port operator Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSE.NS) is part of the Adani Group. The Adani Group owns and manages terminals in the ports of Mundra and Dahej (India) and Abbot Point (Australia), terminals are also being built in Hazira, Mormugao, Visakhapatnam and Kandla (India) and Dudgeon Point (Australia). Adani Group operates in the areas of mining and sales of coal and gas, logistics and energy.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/341229/ 

The South Korean government will speed up the issuance of visas to attract shipbuilders

January 9, 2023

The shortage of specialists in the industry is estimated at 14 thousand people

The government plans to shorten visa administration procedures for foreign workers employed by South Korean shipbuilders from the current four months to one month as the shipbuilding industry faces a labor shortage, The Korea Times reported, citing a government statement. According to the estimates of the relevant organization, the labor shortage will reach 14 thousand people by the end of 2023.

According to the report, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy have unveiled a plan to eliminate barriers in attracting foreign workers to the shipbuilding industry. Under this plan, shipbuilders and subcontractors can employ up to 30% of foreign nationals of the total domestic workforce. The current limit is 20%.

The government is also planning to increase the administrative staff of visa specialists, which will allow issuing documents within 10 days. Currently it takes about five weeks for a visa to be issued after a preliminary check.

South Korea, along with China and Japan, currently have the largest portfolios of orders for ships.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/341089/ 

Investments in new container terminals in Primorye will amount to more than 170 billion rubles

December 16 2022

Primorsky region experienced a full-scale “turn to the East” in 2022

Governor of Primorsky region Oleg Kozhemyako announced the priorities of the investment policy of the region for 2023. In his investment message, delivered on December 16, 2022, the governor stressed that the region experienced a full-scale “pivot to the East” in 2022 and the seaports became a point of attraction for cargo from the Asia-Pacific countries. Investments in the creation of new container terminals will amount to more than 170 billion rubles, according to the press service of the government of Primorsky region.

“Investors are developing projects for new container terminals in Vladivostok, Bolshoy Kamen, Posyet, Slavyanka with an investment of over 170 billion rubles. In addition, agreements were signed on the creation of six transport and logistics centers by 2028, which operate in a single technological process with seaports, with a total capacity of up to 6 million containers per year,” the governor said.

The Vladivostok Commercial Sea Port is creating the Eastern transport and logistics hub, which provides for the construction of two deep-water berths with depths of up to 17 meters and a container terminal for up to 1.2 million containers.

The head of the region began his investment message by summing up the economic results of the region for 2022. The Governor noted that the region remains resilient and continues to develop in the face of sanctions, adapting to changing circumstances. Gross regional product this year will be about 1.5 trillion rubles.

At the end of 2022, the economy of Primorye showed significant growth: turnover in the transport industry increased by 36%, the volume of housing commissioned increased by 24%, investments increased by 67%, and foreign trade turnover showed an increase of 18%.

Next year Primorye plans to continue working within the framework of the approved export strategy and expand the geography of deliveries, increase the number of exporting enterprises and create representative offices of the region in the strategic markets of China and Vietnam.

Container traffic in the ports of the Far East intensified after the departure of international shipping operators from the ports of the Russian Baltic after February 2022. According to Infranews, the container throughput of the ports of the Far Eastern Basin in November 2022 increased by 5.7% compared to the same period last year to 199.85 thousand TEU. Growth in container handling has been noted for the past four months, analysts emphasize. Growth rates in November somewhat slowed down compared to the record high (since March this year) in October (+22.5%). There is a wavy trend in turnover: further acceleration of growth rates is possible in December.

The port of Vladivostok handled 122.38 thousand TEU over the month, which is 7% more than last year. Port Vostochny increased its transshipment by 7%, up to 49.77 thousand TEU, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky – by 13%.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/340269/