The last decade’s affairs of Russian Baltic ports were dramatic, interesting and complex. However, the ports can also prove their track records by success stories. The Big Port of Saint Petersburg is currently the largest container port in the Baltic Sea, the First Container Terminal – a leader in container handlings in the region. The Port of Primorsk is a major oil port and Rosterminalugol has grown into the biggest coal terminal.

1. Russian ports along the Baltic coast after transition
Russia’s window onto Europe
Photo: JSC Seaport St. Petersburg
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
It was not until the 18th century that Russia gained access to the
Baltic Sea and although the number of seaports in the Russian
Federation has increased since that time, the Baltic ‘window’ still
plays a leading role within the country in terms of cargo turnover.
The seaports of the region can be divided into two groups: multi-purpose
facilities and highly specialized ones. The Big Port Saint Peters-burg,
Vyborg and Kaliningrad are multipurpose ports, handling a wide
range of freight categories. Primorsk specializes in oil and oil products,
Vysotsk has two dedicated terminals: an oil-loading and a coal termi-nal,
whereas Ust-Luga is launching a number of specialized facilities. In
2013, the Baltic ports’ share within the total Russian ports’ freight turno-ver
was close to 37%; this figure can be further broken down to a 38%
oil share in this score, 49% in oil products, 60% in containers, 24% in
coal, 61% in refrigerated cargo and 38% in ro-ro and ferry-borne cargo.
The total cargo volume handled by Russian ports along the Baltic coast
reached 216.01 mln tn, out of which 78.8 mln tn constituted oil, 54.57
mln tn – oil products, 24.89 mln tn (or 2.89 mln TEU) – containerized
cargo and 23.87 mln tn was the amount of total coal handlings.
Fig. 1. Cargo turnover dynamics in the Russian Baltic ports 2004-2013 [mln tn]
90 | Baltic Transport Journal | 4/2014
by Olga Gopkalo and Alexander Goloviznin, Mostroytechnology
The last decade’s affairs of Russian Baltic ports were dramatic, interesting and complex. How-ever,
the ports can also prove their track records by success stories. The Big Port of Saint Pe-tersburg
is currently the largest container port in the Baltic Sea, the First Container Terminal
– a leader in container handlings in the region. The Port of Primorsk is a major oil port and
Rosterminalugol has grown into the biggest coal terminal.
Foreign trade freight prevails in the Baltic seaports of Rus-sia,
with 52.04 mln tn of dry cargo (delivered mainly by rail) and
132.7 mln of liquid cargo (in majority delivered by pipelines)
exported this way. Imports included dry cargo turnover (25.33
mln tn), transported from ports mainly by road, in containers
and a small volume of liquid cargo (wine in bulk imported via
Vyborg). The short-sea shipping freight volume amounted to
3.08 mln tn, i.e. some 1.5% of the total cargo turnover.
Development after transition
Over the time-frame of 2004-2013, the freight turnover
nearly doubled in the Baltic ports of Russia, constituting an
85% growth. It is impossible to understand what stimulated this
rapid growth without analysing the general context of the RF’s
seaport development in the post-Soviet era.
After the dissolution of the USSR, a substantial part of
port capacities previously used for handling exports were lo-cated
within the territories of former Soviet republics – now
independent states: Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Ukraine.
RF’s losses were most significant in the Baltic Sea region. Such
traditional channels of Soviet/Russian exports as Ventspils,
Klaipėda, Riga and Tallinn remained abroad. Therefore, a ma-jor
part of Russian freights was shipped via ports of adjacent
states. Over the post-Soviet period (1990-2014), the Russian
economy’s growth was fuelled by raw materials (mainly – oil,
oil products, coal and fertilizers) exported mainly via seaports.
Imports saw an increase in containerized transport to the RF.
The freight flow slowdown in the years 1991-1994 caused by
the system crash, was followed by a rapid growth (hindered
then by the 1998 crisis).

2. 4/2014 | Baltic Transport Journal | 91
Fig. 2. Cargo turnover dynamics in the Russian Baltic ports 2004-2013 –
cargo categories [mln tn]
left with limited container handling capacities, thereby being forced to
use transit ports of the Baltic States and Finland. In 2000, the container
traffic in Russian ports constituted some 439 thou. TEU. Considering
the circumstances, new container handling capacities were required.
Developments were mainly owing to the Russian transport companies’
effort (National Container Company, Severstaltrans/N-Trans – ac-quired
by Global Ports, Delo Group). Since 2005, a snowballing increase
in the car sales volume has been observed in the country: 20-30% annu-ally.
This rising demand has been met mainly by imports, the volume of
which grew nearly 10 times over the analysed period, reaching its peak
level in 2008, with nearly 1.9 mln cars imported to Russia.
All this resulted in a deficit of transport infrastructure for im-port
traffic. The first batches of imported new cars arrived in Rus-sian
Baltic ports in December 2006, initially to modernized berths
and yards. Many car terminals emerged at the peak of demand
(imports) and they were not constructed as dedicated, specialist
facilities, but were arranged based on what was available.
The Big Port Saint Petersburg
In the period between 2004 and 2013 containerized cargo turn-over
multiplied nearly four times in Russian ports – from 1.3 tо 4.8
mln TEU. Baltic ports of the country are playing a leading role in
this process – this is where more than half of the cargo volume is
handled, mainly – in the Big Port of Saint Petersburg.
Fig. 3. Containerized cargo turnover dynamics at the Big Port Saint
Petersburg 2004-2013 [thou. TEU]
Regardless of the high saturation of the Baltic container market
and the growth of competition, investors’ interest in the port is
not fading, as using Saint Petersburg is an optimum solution for
many Russian exporters and importers. Therefore, cargo owners
and transport companies in the RF have been and are still mostly
interested in this port. Yet, its development is hindered by territo-rial
limitations and the vicinity of urban areas.
As of November 25, 2005, the Big Port Saint Petersburg’s contain-er
turnover hit and later exceeded the level of 1 mln TEU. In 2008, the
turnover of the port’s largest container terminal – the First Container
Terminal (FCT) – surpassed one million TEU as well. Currently, all
major container terminals in Saint Petersburg are planning to increase
their throughput capacities. Development plans for the nearest future
provide for capacity expansion from 1,350 up to 1,600 thou. TEU at
FCT, from 1,200 to 1,500 thou. TEU at Petrolesport, from 500 to 1,500
thou. TEU at Container Terminal Saint Petersburg and from 250 to
370 thou. TEU at Moby Dick. Besides investment plans for these ter-minals,
one should also mention Bronka – a project currently devised
to build a multi-purpose cargo handling facility, with a target through-put
capacity of 260 thou. ro-ro units and up to 1,900 thou. TEU.
In recent years, the Big Port Saint Petersburg has not only be-come
the centre of container business, but also the main entrance
point for car imports. The history of its car terminals development
began in 2006, when the Multi-purpose Cargo Handling Com-plex
“Onega” received its first vehicles shipment. The system was
Over the years 1994-2003, the Russian ports’ throughput in-creased
from 111.0 tо 288.3 mln tn (i.e. 2.6 times), to grow from 364.0
to 589.2 mln tn (by 62%) in the period 2004-2013. The change was
mainly due to developing international carriage, primarily exports.
The rapid growth in international trade required adaptation of the
seaports’ infrastructure so as to respond to the market needs. This was
achieved in a number of ways. Firstly, by utilizing the existing, chiefly
multi-purpose port capacities to the maximum, as well as upgrading or
converting the facilities. Often, imperfect technologies were used, when
considering the limited land area and depth in the existing ports, it was
impossible to construct terminals meeting the current needs. This was a
relatively low-cost solution, since the assets involved had already partly
(or completely) depreciated. Besides, as a result of internal privatization
during the years 1992-1994, many port assets were acquired at a low
price and the management of privatized enterprises was taken over by
people with no experience in port operations. Secondly, by re-profiling
non-stevedoring assets (shipbuilding and ship repair yards, fishing
ports). This was also a relatively low-cost solution, although an ineffi-cient
one in terms of technologies applied. And thirdly, by constructing
new ports and terminals, mainly for the purpose of exporting raw ma-terials
and importing containerized consumer goods and ro-ro freight.
With limited public funding, the ‘rebirth’ of the port construc-tion
industry was primarily financed by private investors or by state-owned
corporations (JSC Transneft). The progress in development
of sea ports is reflected in the “Maritime Transport” subprogramme
implemented under the Federal Target Programme “Modernization
of the Russian Transport System (2002-2010)” report. The propor-tion
between the budget-financed and private investments was 1:7.
Exports of energy resources has become the most important driving
force of the port industry’s development. The Port of Primorsk, the
coal terminals in Ust-Luga as well as Vysotsk and Kaliningrad – all
these facilities were constructed to handle export of fossil fuels.
Nevertheless, since 2008 bulk cargo flows (oil, coal) have tended
to transfer eastwards. In 2008-2012, the volume of oil deliveries to
eastern regions grew by 23.4 mln tn, while freights going west, south-west
and south shrank by 10.2 mln tn, 19.2 mln tn and 4.4 mln tn,
respectively. Along with these changes in the geographic pattern of
traffic, pipeline construction projects were launched: the first stage
of the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean oil pipeline in 2009 (including
the oil port Kozmino) and the second stage in 2012 (incl. the port’s
expansion). A similar situation was observed in the case of coal – all
of the freight volume growth occurred in ports of the Far East.
The growth of income earned by Russia from exports over the last
decade resulted in an increasing demand for imported goods transport-ed
mainly in containers. After the dissolution of the USSR, Russia was

3. complicated: cars were transferred from a pier to “Onega-Terminal”
yard with customs assistance. In autumn 2007, Russian Transport
Lines (a customs broker and a car dealer) began unloading cars at
the Sea Fishing Port’s wharfs. Petrolesport commenced receiving
cars concurrently with the first deliveries to Yug-2 Terminal in Ust-
Luga, in 2008. Moreover, this very year a car terminal opened within
the premises of Third Stevedoring Company (which was incorporat-ed
into the Sea Port Saint Petersburg). The terminal is managed by
The BPSP container affairs
The way the currently largest container operator on the Rus-sian
market was established is a complex, but interesting one.
At the beginning of the 1990s Russia’s ports went public and
enterprises were privatized. Based on the Port of Leningrad’s
assets, the JSC Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg was estab-lished
(replaced by the OJSC Sea Port of Saint Petersburg).
By means of buying up shares from the company’s workers, a
group of entrepreneurs took over control of the port, some of
them known for their relations with criminal circles.
Vitaly Yuzhilin and his business partner, Andrey Kobzar (repre-sented
by the British company FQ – First Quantum) were among
those to acquire the port shares last. At the beginning of the 2000s,
the Liechtenstein off-shore company Nasdor Anstalt took over
control of the port. The company was considered associated with
Vitaly Yuzhilin and his partners. In response to requirements of the
time – growing exports of bulk cargoes – specialized terminals
were constructed and expanded in the port. As a result of the staged
modernization, the oil terminal (currently – Petersburg Oil Termi-nal,
a closed joint stock company) increased its 1995 throughput
capacity from 1 mln tn up to 12.5 mln tn in 2013.
In 1998 modernization of a container terminal in the 3rd cargo
district of the Port of Saint Petersburg began, with the First
Container Company being set up for this purpose. In 2002, the
process of redesigning the facilities at Petrolesport was initiated
towards handling containers. Moreover, that year also OJSC Baltic
Bulk Terminal, specializing in handling mineral fertilizers, was
put into operation (its current annual throughput capacity: 5-7
mln tn). The project was initiated by OJSC Uralkali, a company
producing and exporting potash fertilizers, and by structural units
of the OJSC Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg, on a parity basis.
At the same time, a formation of the container market’s key play-ers
began. This complex process involved development of the major
Russian transport groups concentrating on container transportation
and on the management of container terminals, with such ele-ments
as the formation of alliances, division of throughput capaci-ties
and subsequent consolidation. The other side of this process
included distribution of the market of all port assets, where assets
remaining outside the container market profile were transferred to
other stakeholders – exporters and cargo owners.
In 2002 Severstaltrans (a transport group at that time
affiliated with OJSC Severstal, a steel plant) established
National Container Company (NCC), a limited liabil-ity
company), on a parity basis with FQ, controlled most
probably by Vitaly Yuzhilin. NCC was established with the
purpose of managing all assets of the founders associated
with container transport, with the CJSC First Container
Terminal (FCT) as the principal element. Furthermore,
NCC acquired 74% of the container complex in the Port of
Ust-Luga from OJSC Ust-Luga. However, this relationship
did not last long. Four years later, in 2006, Severstaltrans
left National Container Company. The company sold its
shares in NCC and in a number of other assets owned joint-ly
by Yuzhilin in the North-West and South of Russia, keep-ing
only the Far-East container business for themselves.
92 | Baltic Transport Journal | 4/2014
BLG, owner and operator of BLG AutoTerminal Bremerhaven. At
the beginning of 2009, the first stage of a ro-ro terminal construction
was completed in the area of wharf nos. 36-37 (the premises of CJSC
Perstiko, incorporated in the Sea Port Saint Petersburg). All kinds of
rolling cargo can be handled at the terminal and sometimes cars are
received here (SEAT, Fiat LCV and other brands).
The new terminals were very much used during the period of
rapid growth of imports. As the rate of imports slows down and
In 2004, Vitaly Yuzhilin focussed on his container business and
withdrew from a number of port assets, keeping a 50% interest
in FCT. Nasdor Anstalt sold its 50% in the stevedoring company
Neva-Metal to its partner in NCC, Severstaltrans. As a consequence,
Neva-Metal was included in the Russian Steel division of Severstal.
Neva-Metal has been handling metal products ever since, including
containerized freights. For this purpose, the new owner fitted the
terminal with adequate equipment. Nasdor Anstalt‘s 50% interest
in the Baltic Bulk Terminal was sold to Uralkali – the cargo owner
and second partner in the project. The arrangement was announced in
2007 by Uralkali, which acquired a complete block of terminal shares.
In 2004 Nasdor Anstalt sold its controlling interest in the Sea
Port of Saint Petersburg to the Danish company Jysk Stålindus-tri,
representing Novolipetsk Steel Company (NLMK Group).
Within the process of restructuring NLMK’s assets, shares in the
Sea Port of Saint Petersburg, together with the interest in three
stevedoring companies: First Stevedoring Company, Second
Stevedoring Company and Third Stevedoring Company were
acquired by an international transport group, Universal Cargo
Logistics Holding B.V. (UCLH). The latter is an international trans-port
group, which incorporates a number of stevedoring, shipping,
shipbuilding and logistic assets and is controlled by Vladimir Lisin.
Novolipetsk Steel Company is Lisin’s major asset.
Following Severstaltrans’ exit from NCC, Sergey Gener-alov’s
Industrial Investors Group owning the Far Eastern
Shipping Company (FESCO) became First Quantum’s new
partner. FESCO’s interest in port assets complied with the
company’s strategy of developing a comprehensive offer of
logistic services. For this purpose, the existing railway and
shipping assets had to be supplemented with terminals. Nev-ertheless,
this partnership did not last long either.
Besides the differing approaches to business, the Ust-Luga
Container Terminal project became the main apple of discord
between the partners. The supporters of Yuzhilin intended to invest
in the terminal construction actively, while FESCO considered the
project to be premature and inadequate to the situation on the mar-ket
at the time of recession. In the summer of 2009, FQ extended a
public proposal to FESCO to leave the construction project of the
Ust-Luga Container Terminal in Leningrad oblast in response
to FESCO’s refusal to finance the project. In 2010, FESCO sold its
shares in NCC Group’s joint ventures to a company owned by
Andrey Kobzar. First Quantum’s structural units became the First
Container Terminal’s principal shareholders. Concurrently, one
other major player was emerging on the Russian container market.
Following disposal of its interest in the Petersburg Container
Terminal, Severstaltrans acquired a controlling block of Pe-trolesport
shares in 2007. At the time of this transaction, the
share of containerized cargo in Petrolesport’s total turnover
accounted for 50%. The new owners set a goal to turn Petrole-sport
into a standard, specialized container terminal. In 2013,
containers accounted for 78% of the terminal’s throughput.
More or less at the same time Severstaltrans acquired interest
in the container terminal Moby Dick. The facility, a ferry and cargo
terminal located on Kronstadt Island – a territory adjacent to the dam
which is part of the Saint Petersburg Flood Prevention Facility Com-plex
– started operations in 2002. The terminal was developed and
initially owned by Containerships Oy, a Finnish operator. In 2006,
during construction of the Saint Petersburg Flood Prevention Com-plex,
there was a conflict between the stevedoring company and the
dam developer who insisted that the land leased by Moby Dick for
terminal construction should be made available as a yard for storing
dam construction materials. This conflict intensified in 2007, when the
Flood Prevention Facility Complex’s management blocked the termi-nal
access road. The land site was at risk of seizure. The management
of the terminal resolved the situation by attempts of a corporate raid.
At the end of 2007, structural units of Severstaltrans acquired
a 50% interest in Moby Dick, thereby becoming Container-ships’
partners. In next to no time the new shareholders man-aged
to obtain from the Ministry of Transport a long-awaited
permission to arrange a border crossing at the second stage of the
terminal, at the same time solving the conflict around the land
sites. Currently, Global Ports holds 75% of the terminal shares.
In 2008, structural units of Severstaltrans began operating
under the N-Trans brand. Port assets were consolidated into
Global Ports Investments. Currently, Global Ports incorpo-rates
several Russian and Finnish port and land-based con-tainer
terminals, as well as operating an oil terminal in Estonia.
It is a leading operator of port-based container terminals on
the Russian market. At the end of November 2012, 37.5% of
Global Ports was acquired by APM Terminals B.V., the port
branch of A.P. Møller-Maersk A/S. In December 2013, Global
Ports/APMT absorbed National Container Company.
At the moment, Global Ports/APMT group controls all
major container terminals at the Big Port Saint Petersburg:
CJSC Container Terminal, OJSC Petrolesport, Moby Dick
Ltd. (75% jointly with Containerships Oy). The figures from
2013 show that these terminals handled 80% of contain-ers
at the Big Port Saint Petersburg. Furthermore, Global
Ports/APMT owns 80% of Ust-Luga Container Terminal
and a number of assets in the Black Sea and Far East ports.
The Container Terminal Saint Petersburg is the only one
among the major container terminals of the Saint Petersburg port
not owned by Global Ports/APMT. The facility was built in 2008-
2011 and replaced general cargo and coal handling facilities within
the 4th cargo district of the port and is a joint venture of the Sea
Port Saint Petersburg (a part of UCLH) and a branch of Medi-terranean
Shipping Company (MSC) – Terminal Investment
Limited S.A. (TIL). The venture invests in container terminals and
develops them. In fact, the terminal is controlled by MSC.
The Sea Fishing Port of Saint Petersburg is an independ-ent
player operating on the container market. Historically, the
company focused on handling perishable cargo, mostly fish.
In 2007, the terminal began handling new vehicle imports.
The next stage resulted from a decision to expand container
operations. Container yard equipment has already been in-stalled
and the terminal has been included in time tables of
container lines. The freight turnover volume has not yet been
significant, but it is expected to reach 128 thou. TEU. ‚

4. 4/2014 | Baltic Transport Journal | 93
state-of-the-art terminals are launched – such as the one in Ust-Lu-ga
– the role of Saint Petersburg’s terminals may decrease.
Tab. 1. Major stevedoring companies at the BPSP
Company name Wharf numbers Cargo categories Freight turnover
Ad v e r t i s e m e n t
in 2013
CJSC First Container Terminal 82-87 containers, refrigerated
containers
11.96 mln tn
1,083.9 thou. TEU
CJSC Petersburg Oil Terminal 112А, B, W, ПНТ-1-4,
anchoring piles
diesel oil, mazut 9.10 mln tn
OJSC Petrolesport 42-48 containers, ro-ro 7.82 mln tn
711.4 thou. TEU
OJSC Sea Port Saint
Petersburg
1-7, 15-26, 29-32,
35-41, 67, 68, 102,
103
colour metals, refrigerated
cargo, general cargo, ro-ro,
bulk cargo, cars, coal
7.73 mln tn
OJSC Baltic Bulk Terminal 106, 107 mineral fertilizers 4.72 mln tn
CJSC Container Terminal
101А, B, W containers 3.73 mln tn
Saint Petersburg
396.4 thou. TEU
CJSC Neva-Metal 71-74 iron, containers 2.93 mln tn
CJSC In-Transit anchorage 5А,
external roadstead
oil products 1.58 mln tn
Moby Dick Ltd Litke base, L-1, 2 containerized cargo 1.34 mln tn
219.3 thou. TEU
CJSC Infotech Baltika anchorage 5А, oil products 1.11 mln tn
St. Peter’s Terminal Ltd. 15k, 16k, 17k general cargo, refrigerated
cargo
1.10 mln tn
Delta Service Ltd. 94 oil products 1.02 mln tn
Sea Fishing Port Ltd. Р3-6 general cargo, containers 0.98 mln tn
Photo: JSC Seaport St. Petersburg

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94 | Baltic Transport Journal | 4/2014
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Construction of the C-Power offshore
wind park off the Belgian Coast.
Dredging of a turning basin and an access channel for a new coal export terminal in Santa Marta, Colombia.
In May 2012, a distant terminal located at Cape Putevoy was
included in the Port of Vysotsk. The terminal is part of the Vyborg-skaya
Cellulose industrial plant and is intended to handle general
cargo (including pellets). Its annual capacity is up to 3 mln tn.
Vysotsk’s twin brother – the Port of Vyborg – was also owned by
ROSA Holding at the beginning of the 2000s. The distance between the
ports of Vyborg and Vysotsk is not greater than 30 km and for some
time they even used to have a common port authority. Nevertheless,
their history followed two different paths. Initially, ROSA Holding’s
coal was handled at the Port of Vyborg, but as the port is located within
the city centre, a decision was made to cease this type of operation. In
2007, ROSA Holding decided to focus on developing the Port of Vy-sotsk
and sold its assets in the Port of Vyborg to Oslo Marine Group
(OMG), owned by Vitaly Arkhangelsky – a multi-profile structure de-veloping
business in a relatively wide range of directions, including: in-surance,
leasing, real estate, port, transport and freight services.
As far as the port business was concerned, the founder of Oslo
Marine Group had ambitions to develop the Port of Vyborg into a
multi-purpose cargo handling complex with an annual throughput
capacity of 3 mln tn (at the moment of sale, the annual turnover was
close to 1.1 mln tn). To achieve this goal and to finance development
of a shipping company and other projects, huge loans were contracted
from a number of Russian banks. It became obvious after a couple of
years that reality did not comply with the plans at all. Not only did
the shallow Port of Vyborg turn out to be insufficiently competitive to
perform such tasks, but additionally a conflict with the Federal State
Unitary Enterprise Rosmorport arose over the legal validity of berth
lease contracts; this led to withdrawal of some of the berths from opera-tion.
In the meantime, loan debts grew. In 2009, Oslo Marine Group’s
manager and owner, Vitaly Arkhangelsky, went on vacation and never
Vysotsk
The Port of Vysotsk is one example of a successful specialization
strategy. Historically, the port had only dry cargo handling facilities
at its disposal. Having experienced the wave of ownership transfor-mation,
the dry cargo terminal has been managed by Port Vysotsky
Company since 2004. The terminal is owned by ROSA Holding,
through off-shore companies. Initially, the company was established
on the basis of Erunakovo Coal Company and port assets were needed
for the purpose of exports. ROSA Holding exited the coal business in
2007, selling its coal assets to Sibuglemet, but kept control of the port.
The dry cargo section of the Port of Vysotsk continues coal han-dling
operations. Under the federal target program, wharf nos. 1-4
were modernized and dredging works were carried out at the port
basin and waterway. While in 2004 the port was capable of receiving
ships up to 25 thou. dwt, today vessels up to 87 thou. dwt enter the ter-minal,
with roadstead loading. The terminal’s coal turnover increased
from 3.1 to 4.9 mln tn. Further expanding the coal throughput capac-ity
up to 7 mln tn and more is impeded by the insufficient railway ac-cess
infrastructure. Cargo is delivered to the port via the Vyborg rail-way
line. After the high-speed train service Allegro has been launched,
the freight traffic has to be transferred to an alternative route – namely
to the still non-existent Losevo-Kamenogorsk line. Yet, the by-pass
completion has already been postponed more than once.
In June 2004, the Port of Vysotsk gained an oil terminal. The first start-up
facilities of the RPK Vysotsk–Lukoil-II oil terminal were commis-sioned
to handle light and dark oil products, with an annual throughput
capacity of 2.5 mln tn. The second stage of the complex commissioned in
2005 increased the terminal’s capacity to 10.7 mln tn and in 2008 – to 12.0
mln tn. Today, the annual throughput capacity of the terminal amounts
to 13.5 mln tn. The terminal handles Lukoil’s export freight flows.

6. 4/2014 | Baltic Transport Journal | 95
returned to Russia. Since that time, creditors have not ceased efforts
to recover the outstanding debts from OMG’s structural units and to
take over control of the remaining assets, including the OJSC Port of
Vyborg. Lawsuits with banks and the unsolved conflict over the lease
of berths are not conducive to port development, but still the flow of
freight has somewhat increased, to reach a volume of 1.5 mln tn in
2013. The growth was owing to the transshipment of coal.
Primorsk
A major oil port on the Baltic Sea and the second among all of the
Russian ports in terms of cargo turnover – Primorsk – is an indispensa-ble
point of the Baltic pipeline system and the Kstovo-Yaroslavl-Kirishi-
Primorsk pipeline for the transportation of low-sulphur diesel oil. The
port started operations in 2001, when the first stage of the Specmorneft-port
Primorsk was launched (12 mln tn of annual capacity). In 2004,
the second stage opened (50 mln tn) and in 2006 – the third one (74
mln tn capacity). In the early 2000s – a period of insufficient state sup-port,
port development was financed by Transneft, a company dealing
with pipeline transportation of oil. In 2007, the latter firm merged with
Transnefteproduct (engaged in pipeline transportation of oil products),
triggering a process of assets integration in the Port of Primorsk and
today both terminals are controlled by one operator.
The first phase of commissioning Primorsk terminal for light oil
products handling took place in 2008. With an initial annual capacity
of 8.4 mln tn, the terminal recorded a 1.5 mln tn turnover in the first
year of operation and 9.3 mln tn in 2013. Owing to more efficient op-eration
and integration of two terminals operated initially by different
companies, it was possible to go over the designed throughput capac-ity
limit in the category of oil and oil products.
With its convenient location and good depths, the Port of Pri-morsk
attracts investors. The NCSP Group (Novorossiysk Commer-cial
Sea Port) is most active in this respect, planning construction of an
oil terminal with a railway transshipment facility here. However, with
a single-track railway line leading to the port, transportation of any
significant volume of cargo will not be possible, unless a major mod-ernization
of the Vyborg-Primorsk-Ermilovo line occurs. Yet, Rus-sian
Railways is still delaying the solution to the problem and seems to
be more interested in developing access to the Port of Ust-Luga.
Ust-Luga
This seaport has been the most intense growth point in the Baltic
Sea area in recent times. Although its construction was initiated in
1993, new terminals have begun emerging one by one since 2011. The
port’s turnover increased from 0.8 mln tn in 2004 to 62.9 mln tn in
2013. According to 2013 figures, Ust-Luga became the third-largest
port in Russia and the second-largest in the Baltic Sea (after Primorsk).
Fig. 4. Cargo turnover at the Port of Ust-Luga 2004-2013 [mln tn]
OJSC Ust-Luga Company, established for the purpose of construct-ing
the port as well as land development activities, was created in 1992.
The Ust-Luga project, a private-public partnership venture, is a unique
one even on a Russian scale. Almost all of the port’s facilities, except for
Photo: Ust-Luga Company
the water area and navigation systems, are privately held. The project
has attracted strategic investors – national level cargo owners and com-panies
representing the transport and logistics sector.
Tab. 2. Ust-Luga’s calendar of events
2003 The first terminal – Rosterminalugol, accommodating freight flows coming
from the Kuzbassrazrezugol Coal Mining Company – was commissioned.
2004 A project to construct a car and railway ferry terminal was approved as part of
the combined multi-purpose Ust-Luga-Baltiysk-German ports ferry complex.
Two years later, the project was adjusted to allow for large tonnage vessels and
consequently the designed annual throughput capacity of the ferry terminal
was increased to 5.5 mln tn. The first stage of the assignment was completed
that year. 2007 was the year of trial operations and in 2008 a regular Ust-Luga-
Baltiysk (the sea Port of Kaliningrad) connection opened.
2006 Construction of the multi-purpose cargo terminal Yug-2 commenced. The
facility was commissioned two years later. Yug-2, a modern car terminal,
currently the heart of the port, is the only terminal operated by OJSC Ust-
Luga Company. Unlike its competitors in the Big Port Saint Petersburg, the
terminal was designed and constructed from scratch, with the specific purpose
of handling car imports and it offers European service standards.
2008 The JSC Multipurpose Reloading Complex was launched (UCLH has been
the holder of a 100% interest in the terminal since 2008), capable of handling
a wide range of cargo categories, with coal being the core of the freight flows.
December
2011
The first stage of Ust-Luga Container Terminal was commissioned (a part of
the National Container Company, which was incorporated into Global Ports
in 2013). The project is expected to expand the Ust-Luga Container Terminal’s
throughput capacity from 440 tо 2,600 thou. TEU.
2009 A decision to construct the second Baltic Pipeline System (BPS II) was adopted,
giving a strong push stimulating the port’s growth. Construction of an oil terminal
and its accompanying infrastructure began in the seaport. The port water area and
Northern Channel were dredged to allow 160 thou. dwt oil carriers.
May 2012 The new Ust-Luga Bunker Complex was commissioned. The facility is an
indispensable element of BPS II, operated by Neva Pipeline Company. Oil
handling operations began in 2012. The annual throughput capacity of the first
stage of BPS II amounts to 30 mln tn. During the next stage of the project, the
capacity is expected to reach 50 mln tn of oil.
2011-
2012
Liquid cargo handling wharfs operated by Ust-Luga Oil (formerly –
Rosneftbunker) were commissioned one by one. Oil products’ handling began
already in 2011, to reach a volume of 14.9 mln tn in 2013.
2012 The first stage of the Novaya Gavan terminal opened to handle ro-ro freight
including new passenger vehicles.
June
2013
OJSC Novatek (a vertically-structured integrated company, an independent
Russian producer of natural gas) launched its Gas Condensate Fractionation
and Transshipment Complex. The first stage of the facility includes two stable
gas condensate fractionation trains with a capacity of 3 mln tn per annum each
and a terminal capable of loading tankers up to 120 thou. dwt. The Ust-Luga
Complex processes stable gas condensate into petroleum products like light
and heavy naphtha, jet fuel, heating oil and gasoil, and enables the shipping of
petroleum products to international markets. In 2013, the company processed
1,873 thou. tn of stable gas condensate into 1,831 thou. tn of end products.
June
2013
Construction of the Sibur-Portenergo’s light oil products handling terminal,
with a capacity of 1.5 mln tn of LPG and up to 2.5 mln tn of light oil products,
commenced. The bulk of the cargo from a Russian gas processing and
petrochemical group, Sibur, is exported through this terminal.
As for today, the handling facilities operating within the Port
of Ust-Luga are located in the southern part of the port area. As far
as the northern area is concerned, plans include construction of

7. the Baltic Metallurgical Terminal (by United Metallurgical Com-pany)
and a terminal for handling mineral fertilizers (by Euro-
Chem). Furthermore, a grain terminal could possibly be built, as
there is still enough land available. Further capacity expansion is
also possible in the river area of the port.
As has already been mentioned, a comprehensive approach to land
development is a characteristic feature of the Port of Ust-Luga project.
The nearest land development plans provide for creating an industrial
zone. Hence, the ICT Group is planning to build a carbamide factory
in the Ust-Luga industrial zone. The plant’s capacity should be close
to 350 thou. tn of ammonia and 1.2 mln tn of carbamide. The project
also includes construction of a carbamide and possibly an ammonia
handling terminal (OJSC Baltic Fertilizer Terminal). Moreover, con-struction
of a city-cluster with residential developments for the port
workers and other enterprises is underway. Further plans provide for
the development of an agri-industrial cluster and a recreation zone.
Kaliningrad
The Kaliningrad Oblast is an enclave of the Russian Federation and
this fact determines the development of the Port of Kaliningrad very
much. Therefore, the port focuses on regional sources of freight, thereby
limiting its development opportunities.
In 2001, Lukoil commissioned its oil terminal at the Port of Kalinin-grad.
Lukoil carries out oil and gas exploration and production work in
the Kaliningrad region and on the Baltic Sea Shelf; therefore, the termi-nal
handles the mother company’s freight flows. In April 2007, the first
handlings were received by the sea terminal operated by Sodrugestvo-
Soy. Currently, a project is underway to expand the terminal’s annual
throughput capacity, up to 5.5 mln tn. The terminal is part of the Sod-rugestvo
industrial group – it was built together with two oil extraction
96 | Baltic Transport Journal | 4/2014
plants, with a third plant construction underway. Even now, Sodrug-estvo
is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of soya products.
In August 2002, construction of a car and railway ferry com-plex
began in Baltiysk. The first stage (the car section) was launched
in December 2002, the second one (railway) – in September 2006.
The facility is part of the Ust-Luga-Baltiysk-German ports line and
connects the Russian exclave to the mainland.
There is one more factor stimulating Kaliningrad’s growth, name-ly
the development of an automotive cluster in the region, leading to
an increase in demand for container transportation and construction
of container terminals. The dynamics of container freight flows re-flect
the growth of the automotive market and follows its decline. In
2006, in response to growing demand, Baltic Stevedoring Company, a
ferry terminal operator, began developing a cargo handling section of
the car terminal. In 2013, 166.7 thou. TEU was handled at the termi-nal.
Plans provide for capacity expansion from 200 tо 468 thou. TEU.
Moreover, CJSC Avtotor (an automotive factory in Kaliningrad) is
planning to build an 880 thou. TEU terminal in the port, in order to
secure the needs of the automotive cluster, which is being developed
in the special economic zone of the Kaliningrad Oblast.
Not long ago, the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation
was associating the plans for development of the Port of Kaliningrad
with construction of a deep water hub, but in 2014, when the Sabetta
project – a key component in the huge Yamal LNG project – turned out
to be over-budget, the decision was made to withdraw financing from
a number of other port projects and to re-allocate the funds to Sabetta.
The Kaliningrad hub was among the projects affected by this process.
Summing up the Russian port tales, it’s needless to emphasize how
rich the last decade has been in various sectorial affairs. And, it looks like
the future of Russian ports will be no less interesting. ‚
For the tenth year, we are proud to present a variety of highly
interesting lecturers. In addition to the popular programme focusing
on transport and logistics, Baltic Shipping Days is a much appreciated
networking opportunity for professional purchasers and suppliers.
www.balticshippingdays.se