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Large but Old
The results of the largest Russian outpost on the Baltic Sea – the sea port of Saint Petersburg – were pretty good last year: its stevedoring companies handled more than 59.6 million tons, 9.9% up year-on-year. Simultaneously the growth rates were higher than the national average (approximately 7.2%). This year the volume of cargo handling fell sharply because of the problems with financial institutions and, as a consequence, in the industry and trade.
According to the data of the Association of Russian Commercial Sea Ports, the throughput of the port of Saint Petersburg in the first eight months of 2008 amounted to 41 million tons, just 4.3% more in comparison with the same period in 2007 (the average growth in Russia was +2.3%). Simultaneously, the largest group of stevedoring companies – OAO Sea Port of Saint Petersburg – announced officially that its cargo handling volume fell by 8%. A month later, when the results of three quarters became known, port specialists used the word “stagnation” for the first time. Throughput of such mass cargoes as grain, coal, and metals fell significantly. The decrease in ferrous and non-ferrous handling volumes was 7% and 3% respectively, while the throughput of metal scrap suddenly fell by 20%.
Containers remained the only intensively growing segment of freight transportation in the period. In the first nine months their handling volume increased by 21%. Specialists believe this freight flow may remain stable due to the high rates of containerisation throughout the world as well as the good location of Saint Petersburg and its partnership with other ports in Eurasia. For example, in the first half of 2008, the growth of container transportation between Saint Petersburg and the port of Hamburg was 14%. Also, Russia is the third-biggest container trade partner of the port of Hamburg.
Meanwhile, handling of timber, the throughput of which has been falling since the beginning of the year, may disappear entirely. However, the reason for this will not be the economic crisis but customs dues implemented by the RF Government. Since April 1, the export duty on logs amounted to EUR 15 for a cubic metre, and in 2009 it will go up by EUR 35, which will make the business unprofitable for many exporters. That is why some terminals, which used to specialise in log handling, have begun to look for an alternative and re-oriented their capacities for ro-ro cargoes servicing.
In particular, in May 2008, a car terminal was opened on the territory of ZAO The Third Stevedoring Company. Its capacity is 80,000 vehicles per annum. In the first five months of work, approximately 30,000 cars were handled there, but experts are unsure about the prospects of servicing this cargo. “A significant part of our clients purchased vehicles on credit, and now the demand for cars has fallen because of the shortage of means from banks and toughening of loan terms,” says Sergey Antipov, sales manager at one dealer. Another active player in this sector – a car terminal called “Onega” owned by Oslo Marine group of companies – has announced a temporary re-orientation from handling to storing cars. “We had to do it,” admitted specialists of the holding company but they don’t know when they will return to their usual activity. News from the international market brings little consolation. Lloyd’s List reports that, due to the decrease in global car production, many owners of fleets which specialise in transporting the cargo are going to reduce their tonnage. Moreover, a lot of such vessels were launched in the 1970-1980s, and have now become out of date.
On the other hand, regardless of the crisis, the capacities of the Saint Petersburg port are becoming more and more limited. Restricted by the city, it is unable to handle as many cargoes as could be brought there under favourable conditions in the country’s economy and international trade. For example, the lack of a developed network of off-dock terminals in the region prevents it from receiving, servicing and keeping the increasing container flow properly, which is a serious system problem. That is why both independent specialists and state officials consider that the development of a Russian main port on the Baltic Sea is connected with its further specialisation. In the opinion of Russian specialists, the optimal approach to distribution of major cargo flows coming in to the North-West is to separate them into “clean” and “dirty”. According to this concept, the enterprises operating on the territory of the Saint Petersburg port will concentrate on premium handling of containers (at a high level of service) and servicing ro-ro freight flows. The mass cargoes (coal, oil, metals etc.) will be handled by other ports – Vysotsk, Primorsk, and Ust-Luga.
Young and Promising?
Among other young ports in the Russian part of the Baltic Sea, Ust-Luga has a special status and meaning. Developing as one of Russia’s priority projects, this port may become a leader on the Baltic coast in the future. According to the announced development plans, in 2010 its capacities will allow it to handle up to 36 million tons of cargo per annum, and this figure is supposed to increased to 120 million tons by 2025. Nowadays, a coal terminal is already operating in the port; in June 2007 the Universal Reloading Complex serviced the first vessel (the Complex is targeted at receiving, storing and loading for export iron rolled briquettes, cast iron and metal scrap, oversized and heavy cargoes as well as construction materials and equipment); last summer a reloading complex “Yug-2” was put into operation, it handles ro-ro cargoes and containers… “In future we are going to handle annually about 7 million tons of freight – first of all, new import cars,” said Valery Izrailit, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OAO Ust-Luga Company, at the opening ceremony. In his words, the company’s plans are ambitious: to create the largest Baltic Sea ro-ro terminal and change the situation where all new cars are imported to Russia via Finland (703,000 units in 2007). “Compared with to the transportation via Finnish ports, our logistics make transportation of one vehicle cheaper by 500 euros,” claim top Russian managers. “Russia’s car market is rapidly developing and the capacities of Finnish ports are at a maximum and can hardly increase, since cars cannot be put on each other like boxes,” says Konstantin Skovoroda, Director General of RTL. Although, some specialists are sceptical about this idea, they mention that the Russian service can hardly be compared with the Finnish one. Nevertheless, despite the economic crisis, the stakes in the game are increasing. 
In addition, starting from 2011 the sea port of Ust-Luga is going to receive 38 million tons of oil from the second line of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2). And in 2009 an oil terminal is to be opened. It is constructed by Zarubezhneft. It will service the cargo flow, which is now transported via the port of Tallinn. “18 million tons of oil are carried there every year. It should be redirected to Ust-Luga,” says Mr Izrailit.
To improve water navigation and make the port more competitive, the Russian Transport Ministry is ready to invest approximately EUR 0.5 billion into deepening the port and the entrance passage there. As a result, state specialists at the Ministry say the approaches to the ports will be as deep as possible in the Baltic Sea, and the Danish straits will be the only natural restraint. Simultaneously, this will increase the port’s throughput by 10-15%, consider experts. Foreign investors are also aware of the advantages and prospects of the young Russian sea ports. In April 2008, a Kazakh company, Asia Invest LTD, announced it was going to invest RUR 7 billion to create a terminal for general cargo handling in the zone. It is going to build the first stage of the facility (whose annual capacity is to exceed 4 million tons) in 2012.
Frankly, the crisis means it doesn’t matter whether the port is a governmental favourite or not. In the first ten months of 2008, the stevedoring companies operating in Ust-Luga reduced cargo handling by 2.8% year-on-year and it is still unclear whether they will be able to cope with the fall.
As for the other two young Russian ports – Vysotsk and Primorsk – they are oriented at servicing hydrocarbons. In future their development will depend on fluctuations of price and demand for oil on the international market and on the rates of oil extraction and volumes of oil products at Russian refineries, which are now being built. Eric Shmuksts, Director General of LDz, is confident, “In any case, the active development of Russian port infrastructure will re-direct Russian oil bulk handled in the Baltic terminals to the country’s own ports. Already now we are transporting mainly oil products refined in Byelorussia. The share of oil products from Russia is a small one”. Thus, despite the unification of railway tariffs since January 2009, the winds still favour Russia. 
By  Yana  Shimshevich
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Large but Old
The results of the largest Russian outpost on the Baltic Sea – the sea port of Saint Petersburg – were pretty good last year: its stevedoring companies handled more than 59.6 million tons, 9.9% up year-on-year. Simultaneously the growth rates were higher than the national average (approximately 7.2%). This year the volume of cargo handling fell sharply because of the problems with financial institutions and, as a consequence, in the industry and trade.
According to the data of the Association of Russian Commercial Sea Ports, the throughput of the port of Saint Petersburg in the first eight months of 2008 amounted to 41 million tons, just 4.3% more in comparison with the same period in 2007 (the average growth in Russia was +2.3%). Simultaneously, the largest group of stevedoring companies – OAO Sea Port of Saint Petersburg – announced officially that its cargo handling volume fell by 8%. A month later, when the results of three quarters became known, port specialists used the word “stagnation” for the first time. Throughput of such mass cargoes as grain, coal, and metals fell significantly. The decrease in ferrous and non-ferrous handling volumes was 7% and 3% respectively, while the throughput of metal scrap suddenly fell by 20%.
Containers remained the only intensively growing segment of freight transportation in the period. In the first nine months their handling volume increased by 21%. Specialists believe this freight flow may remain stable due to the high rates of containerisation throughout the world as well as the good location of Saint Petersburg and its partnership with other ports in Eurasia. For example, in the first half of 2008, the growth of container transportation between Saint Petersburg and the port of Hamburg was 14%. Also, Russia is the third-biggest container trade partner of the port of Hamburg.
Meanwhile, handling of timber, the throughput of which has been falling since the beginning of the year, may disappear entirely. However, the reason for this will not be the economic crisis but customs dues implemented by the RF Government. Since April 1, the export duty on logs amounted to EUR 15 for a cubic metre, and in 2009 it will go up by EUR 35, which will make the business unprofitable for many exporters. That is why some terminals, which used to specialise in log handling, have begun to look for an alternative and re-oriented their capacities for ro-ro cargoes servicing.
In particular, in May 2008, a car terminal was opened on the territory of ZAO The Third Stevedoring Company. Its capacity is 80,000 vehicles per annum. In the first five months of work, approximately 30,000 cars were handled there, but experts are unsure about the prospects of servicing this cargo. “A significant part of our clients purchased vehicles on credit, and now the demand for cars has fallen because of the shortage of means from banks and toughening of loan terms,” says Sergey Antipov, sales manager at one dealer. Another active player in this sector – a car terminal called “Onega” owned by Oslo Marine group of companies – has announced a temporary re-orientation from handling to storing cars. “We had to do it,” admitted specialists of the holding company but they don’t know when they will return to their usual activity. News from the international market brings little consolation. Lloyd’s List reports that, due to the decrease in global car production, many owners of fleets which specialise in transporting the cargo are going to reduce their tonnage. Moreover, a lot of such vessels were launched in the 1970-1980s, and have now become out of date.
On the other hand, regardless of the crisis, the capacities of the Saint Petersburg port are becoming more and more limited. Restricted by the city, it is unable to handle as many cargoes as could be brought there under favourable conditions in the country’s economy and international trade. For example, the lack of a developed network of off-dock terminals in the region prevents it from receiving, servicing and keeping the increasing container flow properly, which is a serious system problem. That is why both independent specialists and state officials consider that the development of a Russian main port on the Baltic Sea is connected with its further specialisation. In the opinion of Russian specialists, the optimal approach to distribution of major cargo flows coming in to the North-West is to separate them into “clean” and “dirty”. According to this concept, the enterprises operating on the territory of the Saint Petersburg port will concentrate on premium handling of containers (at a high level of service) and servicing ro-ro freight flows. The mass cargoes (coal, oil, metals etc.) will be handled by other ports – Vysotsk, Primorsk, and Ust-Luga.
Young and Promising?
Among other young ports in the Russian part of the Baltic Sea, Ust-Luga has a special status and meaning. Developing as one of Russia’s priority projects, this port may become a leader on the Baltic coast in the future. According to the announced development plans, in 2010 its capacities will allow it to handle up to 36 million tons of cargo per annum, and this figure is supposed to increased to 120 million tons by 2025. Nowadays, a coal terminal is already operating in the port; in June 2007 the Universal Reloading Complex serviced the first vessel (the Complex is targeted at receiving, storing and loading for export iron rolled briquettes, cast iron and metal scrap, oversized and heavy cargoes as well as construction materials and equipment); last summer a reloading complex “Yug-2” was put into operation, it handles ro-ro cargoes and containers… “In future we are going to handle annually about 7 million tons of freight – first of all, new import cars,” said Valery Izrailit, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OAO Ust-Luga Company, at the opening ceremony. In his words, the company’s plans are ambitious: to create the largest Baltic Sea ro-ro terminal and change the situation where all new cars are imported to Russia via Finland (703,000 units in 2007). “Compared with to the transportation via Finnish ports, our logistics make transportation of one vehicle cheaper by 500 euros,” claim top Russian managers. “Russia’s car market is rapidly developing and the capacities of Finnish ports are at a maximum and can hardly increase, since cars cannot be put on each other like boxes,” says Konstantin Skovoroda, Director General of RTL. Although, some specialists are sceptical about this idea, they mention that the Russian service can hardly be compared with the Finnish one. Nevertheless, despite the economic crisis, the stakes in the game are increasing. 
In addition, starting from 2011 the sea port of Ust-Luga is going to receive 38 million tons of oil from the second line of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2). And in 2009 an oil terminal is to be opened. It is constructed by Zarubezhneft. It will service the cargo flow, which is now transported via the port of Tallinn. “18 million tons of oil are carried there every year. It should be redirected to Ust-Luga,” says Mr Izrailit.
To improve water navigation and make the port more competitive, the Russian Transport Ministry is ready to invest approximately EUR 0.5 billion into deepening the port and the entrance passage there. As a result, state specialists at the Ministry say the approaches to the ports will be as deep as possible in the Baltic Sea, and the Danish straits will be the only natural restraint. Simultaneously, this will increase the port’s throughput by 10-15%, consider experts. Foreign investors are also aware of the advantages and prospects of the young Russian sea ports. In April 2008, a Kazakh company, Asia Invest LTD, announced it was going to invest RUR 7 billion to create a terminal for general cargo handling in the zone. It is going to build the first stage of the facility (whose annual capacity is to exceed 4 million tons) in 2012.
Frankly, the crisis means it doesn’t matter whether the port is a governmental favourite or not. In the first ten months of 2008, the stevedoring companies operating in Ust-Luga reduced cargo handling by 2.8% year-on-year and it is still unclear whether they will be able to cope with the fall.
As for the other two young Russian ports – Vysotsk and Primorsk – they are oriented at servicing hydrocarbons. In future their development will depend on fluctuations of price and demand for oil on the international market and on the rates of oil extraction and volumes of oil products at Russian refineries, which are now being built. Eric Shmuksts, Director General of LDz, is confident, “In any case, the active development of Russian port infrastructure will re-direct Russian oil bulk handled in the Baltic terminals to the country’s own ports. Already now we are transporting mainly oil products refined in Byelorussia. The share of oil products from Russia is a small one”. Thus, despite the unification of railway tariffs since January 2009, the winds still favour Russia. 
By  Yana  Shimshevich
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Large but Old
The results of the largest Russian outpost on the Baltic Sea – the sea port of Saint Petersburg – were pretty good last year: its stevedoring companies handled more than 59.6 million tons, 9.9% up year-on-year. Simultaneously the growth rates were higher than the national average (approximately 7.2%). This year the volume of cargo handling fell sharply because of the problems with financial institutions and, as a consequence, in the industry and trade.
According to the data of the Association of Russian Commercial Sea Ports, the throughput of the port of Saint Petersburg in the first eight months of 2008 amounted to 41 million tons, just 4.3% more in comparison with the same period in 2007 (the average growth in Russia was +2.3%). Simultaneously, the largest group of stevedoring companies – OAO Sea Port of Saint Petersburg – announced officially that its cargo handling volume fell by 8%. A month later, when the results of three quarters became known, port specialists used the word “stagnation” for the first time. Throughput of such mass cargoes as grain, coal, and metals fell significantly. The decrease in ferrous and non-ferrous handling volumes was 7% and 3% respectively, while the throughput of metal scrap suddenly fell by 20%.
Containers remained the only intensively growing segment of freight transportation in the period. In the first nine months their handling volume increased by 21%. Specialists believe this freight flow may remain stable due to the high rates of containerisation throughout the world as well as the good location of Saint Petersburg and its partnership with other ports in Eurasia. For example, in the first half of 2008, the growth of container transportation between Saint Petersburg and the port of Hamburg was 14%. Also, Russia is the third-biggest container trade partner of the port of Hamburg.
Meanwhile, handling of timber, the throughput of which has been falling since the beginning of the year, may disappear entirely. However, the reason for this will not be the economic crisis but customs dues implemented by the RF Government. Since April 1, the export duty on logs amounted to EUR 15 for a cubic metre, and in 2009 it will go up by EUR 35, which will make the business unprofitable for many exporters. That is why some terminals, which used to specialise in log handling, have begun to look for an alternative and re-oriented their capacities for ro-ro cargoes servicing.
In particular, in May 2008, a car terminal was opened on the territory of ZAO The Third Stevedoring Company. Its capacity is 80,000 vehicles per annum. In the first five months of work, approximately 30,000 cars were handled there, but experts are unsure about the prospects of servicing this cargo. “A significant part of our clients purchased vehicles on credit, and now the demand for cars has fallen because of the shortage of means from banks and toughening of loan terms,” says Sergey Antipov, sales manager at one dealer. Another active player in this sector – a car terminal called “Onega” owned by Oslo Marine group of companies – has announced a temporary re-orientation from handling to storing cars. “We had to do it,” admitted specialists of the holding company but they don’t know when they will return to their usual activity. News from the international market brings little consolation. Lloyd’s List reports that, due to the decrease in global car production, many owners of fleets which specialise in transporting the cargo are going to reduce their tonnage. Moreover, a lot of such vessels were launched in the 1970-1980s, and have now become out of date.
On the other hand, regardless of the crisis, the capacities of the Saint Petersburg port are becoming more and more limited. Restricted by the city, it is unable to handle as many cargoes as could be brought there under favourable conditions in the country’s economy and international trade. For example, the lack of a developed network of off-dock terminals in the region prevents it from receiving, servicing and keeping the increasing container flow properly, which is a serious system problem. That is why both independent specialists and state officials consider that the development of a Russian main port on the Baltic Sea is connected with its further specialisation. In the opinion of Russian specialists, the optimal approach to distribution of major cargo flows coming in to the North-West is to separate them into “clean” and “dirty”. According to this concept, the enterprises operating on the territory of the Saint Petersburg port will concentrate on premium handling of containers (at a high level of service) and servicing ro-ro freight flows. The mass cargoes (coal, oil, metals etc.) will be handled by other ports – Vysotsk, Primorsk, and Ust-Luga.
Young and Promising?
Among other young ports in the Russian part of the Baltic Sea, Ust-Luga has a special status and meaning. Developing as one of Russia’s priority projects, this port may become a leader on the Baltic coast in the future. According to the announced development plans, in 2010 its capacities will allow it to handle up to 36 million tons of cargo per annum, and this figure is supposed to increased to 120 million tons by 2025. Nowadays, a coal terminal is already operating in the port; in June 2007 the Universal Reloading Complex serviced the first vessel (the Complex is targeted at receiving, storing and loading for export iron rolled briquettes, cast iron and metal scrap, oversized and heavy cargoes as well as construction materials and equipment); last summer a reloading complex “Yug-2” was put into operation, it handles ro-ro cargoes and containers… “In future we are going to handle annually about 7 million tons of freight – first of all, new import cars,” said Valery Izrailit, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OAO Ust-Luga Company, at the opening ceremony. In his words, the company’s plans are ambitious: to create the largest Baltic Sea ro-ro terminal and change the situation where all new cars are imported to Russia via Finland (703,000 units in 2007). “Compared with to the transportation via Finnish ports, our logistics make transportation of one vehicle cheaper by 500 euros,” claim top Russian managers. “Russia’s car market is rapidly developing and the capacities of Finnish ports are at a maximum and can hardly increase, since cars cannot be put on each other like boxes,” says Konstantin Skovoroda, Director General of RTL. Although, some specialists are sceptical about this idea, they mention that the Russian service can hardly be compared with the Finnish one. Nevertheless, despite the economic crisis, the stakes in the game are increasing. 
In addition, starting from 2011 the sea port of Ust-Luga is going to receive 38 million tons of oil from the second line of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2). And in 2009 an oil terminal is to be opened. It is constructed by Zarubezhneft. It will service the cargo flow, which is now transported via the port of Tallinn. “18 million tons of oil are carried there every year. It should be redirected to Ust-Luga,” says Mr Izrailit.
To improve water navigation and make the port more competitive, the Russian Transport Ministry is ready to invest approximately EUR 0.5 billion into deepening the port and the entrance passage there. As a result, state specialists at the Ministry say the approaches to the ports will be as deep as possible in the Baltic Sea, and the Danish straits will be the only natural restraint. Simultaneously, this will increase the port’s throughput by 10-15%, consider experts. Foreign investors are also aware of the advantages and prospects of the young Russian sea ports. In April 2008, a Kazakh company, Asia Invest LTD, announced it was going to invest RUR 7 billion to create a terminal for general cargo handling in the zone. It is going to build the first stage of the facility (whose annual capacity is to exceed 4 million tons) in 2012.
Frankly, the crisis means it doesn’t matter whether the port is a governmental favourite or not. In the first ten months of 2008, the stevedoring companies operating in Ust-Luga reduced cargo handling by 2.8% year-on-year and it is still unclear whether they will be able to cope with the fall.
As for the other two young Russian ports – Vysotsk and Primorsk – they are oriented at servicing hydrocarbons. In future their development will depend on fluctuations of price and demand for oil on the international market and on the rates of oil extraction and volumes of oil products at Russian refineries, which are now being built. Eric Shmuksts, Director General of LDz, is confident, “In any case, the active development of Russian port infrastructure will re-direct Russian oil bulk handled in the Baltic terminals to the country’s own ports. Already now we are transporting mainly oil products refined in Byelorussia. The share of oil products from Russia is a small one”. Thus, despite the unification of railway tariffs since January 2009, the winds still favour Russia. 
By  Yana  Shimshevich
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Large but Old
The results of the largest Russian outpost on the Baltic Sea – the sea port of Saint Petersburg – were pretty good last year: its stevedoring companies handled more than 59.6 million tons, 9.9% up year-on-year. Simultaneously the growth rates were higher than the national average (approximately 7.2%). This year the volume of cargo handling fell sharply because of the problems with financial institutions and, as a consequence, in the industry and trade.
According to the data of the Association of Russian Commercial Sea Ports, the throughput of the port of Saint Petersburg in the first eight months of 2008 amounted to 41 million tons, just 4.3% more in comparison with the same period in 2007 (the average growth in Russia was +2.3%). Simultaneously, the largest group of stevedoring companies – OAO Sea Port of Saint Petersburg – announced officially that its cargo handling volume fell by 8%. A month later, when the results of three quarters became known, port specialists used the word “stagnation” for the first time. Throughput of such mass cargoes as grain, coal, and metals fell significantly. The decrease in ferrous and non-ferrous handling volumes was 7% and 3% respectively, while the throughput of metal scrap suddenly fell by 20%.
Containers remained the only intensively growing segment of freight transportation in the period. In the first nine months their handling volume increased by 21%. Specialists believe this freight flow may remain stable due to the high rates of containerisation throughout the world as well as the good location of Saint Petersburg and its partnership with other ports in Eurasia. For example, in the first half of 2008, the growth of container transportation between Saint Petersburg and the port of Hamburg was 14%. Also, Russia is the third-biggest container trade partner of the port of Hamburg.
Meanwhile, handling of timber, the throughput of which has been falling since the beginning of the year, may disappear entirely. However, the reason for this will not be the economic crisis but customs dues implemented by the RF Government. Since April 1, the export duty on logs amounted to EUR 15 for a cubic metre, and in 2009 it will go up by EUR 35, which will make the business unprofitable for many exporters. That is why some terminals, which used to specialise in log handling, have begun to look for an alternative and re-oriented their capacities for ro-ro cargoes servicing.
In particular, in May 2008, a car terminal was opened on the territory of ZAO The Third Stevedoring Company. Its capacity is 80,000 vehicles per annum. In the first five months of work, approximately 30,000 cars were handled there, but experts are unsure about the prospects of servicing this cargo. “A significant part of our clients purchased vehicles on credit, and now the demand for cars has fallen because of the shortage of means from banks and toughening of loan terms,” says Sergey Antipov, sales manager at one dealer. Another active player in this sector – a car terminal called “Onega” owned by Oslo Marine group of companies – has announced a temporary re-orientation from handling to storing cars. “We had to do it,” admitted specialists of the holding company but they don’t know when they will return to their usual activity. News from the international market brings little consolation. Lloyd’s List reports that, due to the decrease in global car production, many owners of fleets which specialise in transporting the cargo are going to reduce their tonnage. Moreover, a lot of such vessels were launched in the 1970-1980s, and have now become out of date.
On the other hand, regardless of the crisis, the capacities of the Saint Petersburg port are becoming more and more limited. Restricted by the city, it is unable to handle as many cargoes as could be brought there under favourable conditions in the country’s economy and international trade. For example, the lack of a developed network of off-dock terminals in the region prevents it from receiving, servicing and keeping the increasing container flow properly, which is a serious system problem. That is why both independent specialists and state officials consider that the development of a Russian main port on the Baltic Sea is connected with its further specialisation. In the opinion of Russian specialists, the optimal approach to distribution of major cargo flows coming in to the North-West is to separate them into “clean” and “dirty”. According to this concept, the enterprises operating on the territory of the Saint Petersburg port will concentrate on premium handling of containers (at a high level of service) and servicing ro-ro freight flows. The mass cargoes (coal, oil, metals etc.) will be handled by other ports – Vysotsk, Primorsk, and Ust-Luga.
Young and Promising?
Among other young ports in the Russian part of the Baltic Sea, Ust-Luga has a special status and meaning. Developing as one of Russia’s priority projects, this port may become a leader on the Baltic coast in the future. According to the announced development plans, in 2010 its capacities will allow it to handle up to 36 million tons of cargo per annum, and this figure is supposed to increased to 120 million tons by 2025. Nowadays, a coal terminal is already operating in the port; in June 2007 the Universal Reloading Complex serviced the first vessel (the Complex is targeted at receiving, storing and loading for export iron rolled briquettes, cast iron and metal scrap, oversized and heavy cargoes as well as construction materials and equipment); last summer a reloading complex “Yug-2” was put into operation, it handles ro-ro cargoes and containers… “In future we are going to handle annually about 7 million tons of freight – first of all, new import cars,” said Valery Izrailit, Chairman of the Board of Directors of OAO Ust-Luga Company, at the opening ceremony. In his words, the company’s plans are ambitious: to create the largest Baltic Sea ro-ro terminal and change the situation where all new cars are imported to Russia via Finland (703,000 units in 2007). “Compared with to the transportation via Finnish ports, our logistics make transportation of one vehicle cheaper by 500 euros,” claim top Russian managers. “Russia’s car market is rapidly developing and the capacities of Finnish ports are at a maximum and can hardly increase, since cars cannot be put on each other like boxes,” says Konstantin Skovoroda, Director General of RTL. Although, some specialists are sceptical about this idea, they mention that the Russian service can hardly be compared with the Finnish one. Nevertheless, despite the economic crisis, the stakes in the game are increasing. 
In addition, starting from 2011 the sea port of Ust-Luga is going to receive 38 million tons of oil from the second line of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS-2). And in 2009 an oil terminal is to be opened. It is constructed by Zarubezhneft. It will service the cargo flow, which is now transported via the port of Tallinn. “18 million tons of oil are carried there every year. It should be redirected to Ust-Luga,” says Mr Izrailit.
To improve water navigation and make the port more competitive, the Russian Transport Ministry is ready to invest approximately EUR 0.5 billion into deepening the port and the entrance passage there. As a result, state specialists at the Ministry say the approaches to the ports will be as deep as possible in the Baltic Sea, and the Danish straits will be the only natural restraint. Simultaneously, this will increase the port’s throughput by 10-15%, consider experts. Foreign investors are also aware of the advantages and prospects of the young Russian sea ports. In April 2008, a Kazakh company, Asia Invest LTD, announced it was going to invest RUR 7 billion to create a terminal for general cargo handling in the zone. It is going to build the first stage of the facility (whose annual capacity is to exceed 4 million tons) in 2012.
Frankly, the crisis means it doesn’t matter whether the port is a governmental favourite or not. In the first ten months of 2008, the stevedoring companies operating in Ust-Luga reduced cargo handling by 2.8% year-on-year and it is still unclear whether they will be able to cope with the fall.
As for the other two young Russian ports – Vysotsk and Primorsk – they are oriented at servicing hydrocarbons. In future their development will depend on fluctuations of price and demand for oil on the international market and on the rates of oil extraction and volumes of oil products at Russian refineries, which are now being built. Eric Shmuksts, Director General of LDz, is confident, “In any case, the active development of Russian port infrastructure will re-direct Russian oil bulk handled in the Baltic terminals to the country’s own ports. Already now we are transporting mainly oil products refined in Byelorussia. The share of oil products from Russia is a small one”. Thus, despite the unification of railway tariffs since January 2009, the winds still favour Russia. 
By  Yana  Shimshevich
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Priorities Are Set
– Mr Davydenko, what priorities stand out in the state policy in the sea and river transport sector?
– Last May the RF Government in its decree approved the new federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”, which includes subprogramme “Sea Transport” with the total financing volume of RUR 631 billion. This document is aimed at speeding development of sea transport infrastructure to provide necessary rates of Russian economy’s growth.
According to the target figures mentioned in the subprogramme, cargo handling volumes in the Russian ports are to grow to 774 million tons – by 1.5 times more than in 2009. Such results will be achieved due to realisation of a number of projects, including development of Ust-Luga port, construction of a container port hub in Baltiysk and a terminal for LNG handling in Teriberka settlement (Murmansk region) and development of an oil-loading terminal for the ESPO in Vostochny port, etc.
By the end of 2015 it is planned to fulfill the Russian economy’s need for foreign trade transportation as well as to create a 20% reserve of port capacities necessary to increase manufacturing and develop international cargo transit.
Also, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages construction of 90 support vessels (ice-breakers, wrecking, environmental, and hydrographic ships), coast objects of basin wrecking management and the purchase of deep-sea mobile universal equipment. To develop sea ports, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages investment of RUR 182 billion from the federal budget and RUR 449 billion from non-budget sources, which exceeds the volume of the previous programme’s financing by 43% (with means from the federal budget growing by 3.6 times).
A distinguishing feature of the subprogramme is that the realisation of large complex projects is separated into another subprogramme “Development of Transport Services Export”, in the framework of which the ports of Murmansk, Novorossiysk, Vostochny and Taman will be constructed (the share from the federal budget is RUR 181.1 billion, with RUR 248 billion from non-budget sources).
– Speaking about the scaled infrastructure projects, we must mention the issue of coordinating different transport modes. Often such projects are carried out without regard to the plans of adjacent transport modes. As a result, the constructed capacities turned out to be underloaded…
– Naturally, a sea port is a transport junction where several transport modes interact. That is why it should be remembered that the good results of most Russian ports’ work are directly connected to the fulfillment of the measures for modernising and enlarging the port railway infrastructure, in particular at the stations. That is why the expansion of the port infrastructure is impossible without coordination with investment programmes in other sectors. 
Unfortunately, not all the projects being developed are so complex, so not all transport modes could be used efficiently there. This approach envisages that the projects will be profitable for only one interested party. Neither parallel projects in adjacent sectors nor regional interests are taken into consideration. 
Under these conditions, it is especially important to coordinate development of all transport modes, which is envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”. Its creators understood that different transport sectors cannot develop separately from one another.
By the way, this problem occurred when the tender on special economic zones for port type organisations was held last year. Most of the applications for sea ports were highly rated by experts. Simultaneously, the experts revealed the need for better development of the tender issues, especially those connected with the evaluation of  a real need for outer infrastructure in the zones (railways and roads, energy supply, possible deepening of water areas).
– And what about the borders in the sea ports? Their lack used to be one of the most important problems in the activity of Russian ports. As far as I know, much has been done in this area this year…
– In accordance with Article 5 of the law “On Sea Ports in the Russian Federation”, the bills on setting the borders of 66 sea ports are being developed. At the moment, the RF Government has set the borders of four sea ports – Vysotsk, Saint Petersburg Passenger Port, Varandey and Prigorodnoe. The bill on setting the border of the sea port of Taman has been brought to the Government. The bills on the borders of three sea ports (Vitino, Eisk, and Anapa) are being examined by the federal executive bodies in charge. The materials for setting the borders of 16 other ports are almost ready (the ports are Vostochny, Primorsk, Kavkaz, Ust-Luga, Novorossiysk, Kaliningrad, Saint Petersburg, Murmansk, Tuapse, Sochi, Vyborg, Kandalaksha, Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Cape of Lazarev, De-Kastri, Gelenjik). The work of defining the borders of the largest ports is to be completed before the end of 2008.
When preparing materials to define the borders of a sea port, the largest difficulties are caused by the need to form cadastral maps of each of the areas included in the port as well as to describe the borders of the territories and water areas of the former sea fishing ports and any other objects inside port boundaries in accordance with RF President’s Order № 1682 dating from September 22, 2007.  
Setting port borders is closely connected with the development of RF territorial planning. Such schemes, in terms of sea ports development, will be elaborated in accordance with the events envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)” and other federal target programmes.
There Must Not Be Too Much State Regulation 
 
– What is being done to improve state regulation in the sector of sea ports? Market players often say that it is necessary to abolish state regulation of services provided by natural monopolies. What is your opinion?
– Currently, in the ports there is competition in the sector of loading and unloading works and other services connected with them. Naturally, state regulation often restrains further development of competition and limits the work of ports included in the Register of natural monopolists in comparison with the companies to which the regulation is not applied.
The presence of competitors, not bound by such control, makes the state-regulated subjects’ activity less efficient and does not allow use of a flexible price policy to become more attractive to cargo owners. Meanwhile, there is the threat of an abrupt tariff increase.
I believe that state regulation should be abolished only in some ports and some of them should be allowed to regulate their tariff policy by themselves. In every case, the individual conditions and the need for railway tariffs regulation must be considered.  
– Have any issues remained in terms of concluding contracts on renting hydro-technical facilities, which are the federal property?
– There is one such issue concerning the order of renting out federal real estate. The bill on this problem is now being discussed. The agreement with the Russian Ministry of Economy envisages that after the bill is approved, all the contracts on the berths rented and to be rented will be re-concluded.
Federal state unitary enterprise (FGUP) Rosmorport, which manages 521 berths, concluded 7 long-term contracts on federal property rent for 19 berths in the ports of Saint Petersburg, Vysotsk, Olya, Eisk and Taman.
– The port sector is considered one of the most attractive for private capital. Does it use the concession mechanism and the opportunities given by the Investment Fund? Are there restraining factors of a normative and legislative nature?
– As for concession contracts, there are some problems which may be solved at the legislative level. According to the law “On Concession Agreements”, when an agreement is concluded, its object to be reconstructed must be the property of the concession holder and no third party is to have a right on it. Thus, before a tender agreement is announced, the object must be brought out of the property or operative management of a state or a municipal enterprise. There appears a situation where there is no-one in charge of an object’s maintenance from the day of the decision on holding a tender on a concession agreement to the date the agreement is concluded. It is offered to determine legally that the person in charge of maintenance during this period is the one who owned and used it before the tender was announced.
As for investment projects in sea transport funded by the Investment Fund, we are now examining a contract on joint financing the investment project “Construction and Further Exploitation of the Transshipment Complex Yug-2 in the Commercial Sea Port Ust-Luga.”
To Stand Up for National Interests
 
– What is your evaluation of the competitiveness of Russian ports in terms of the level of services provided to ship owners and cargo owners? Is it possible to assess whether the competitiveness of Russian ports has increased lately?
– First of all, it is clients who evaluate the quality of port services. The growth of foreign trade cargo throughput in Russian ports, especially in comparison with the decreasing share in this type of cargo handling in neighbouring countries – Ukraine and the Baltic states – proves their competitiveness in terms of the level of services. Russian portmen have done a lot to reach international standards. Modern terminals were built, existing capacities were reconstructed, handling equipment was upgraded and renewed in many ports and dredging was completed at berths and entrance passages. Railwaymen enlarged port stations and railway approaches to ports.
Simultaneously, infrastructure objects were put into operation in the sea ports, new models of control using advanced IT equipment and the latest scientific elaborations were implemented. All these made for an increase in the thoroughness and quality of the servicing of vessels and wagons.
To develop sea port competitiveness, the state should create favourable conditions for the companies involved in port infrastructure development, and mechanisms of speeding up development of port infrastructure. The list of the most important tasks includes improvement of port management methods and creation of a single concept for national transport development.
In order to fulfill the tasks, a raft of measures were developed and approved at a meeting of the RF Government in September 2007. It is aimed at development of sea ports and special port economic zones. The Federal law “On the Sea Ports in the RF”, adopted in November 2007, gave an impulse to creation of a significant number of norms aimed at increasing the competitiveness of Russian ports and attracting investment into their development. 
In conclusion, I would like to say that the main task of the Federal Agency of Sea and River Transport is the support of further development of the transport sector and the country’s economy as a whole. We are to upgrade the economy to a new level of development, create an innovation economy and economic growth and welfare for the Russian people by providing access to safe and quality transport services. Thus, the geographical peculiarities of Russia will be turned into a competitive advantage. 
By Ivan Sergeev
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Priorities Are Set
– Mr Davydenko, what priorities stand out in the state policy in the sea and river transport sector?
– Last May the RF Government in its decree approved the new federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”, which includes subprogramme “Sea Transport” with the total financing volume of RUR 631 billion. This document is aimed at speeding development of sea transport infrastructure to provide necessary rates of Russian economy’s growth.
According to the target figures mentioned in the subprogramme, cargo handling volumes in the Russian ports are to grow to 774 million tons – by 1.5 times more than in 2009. Such results will be achieved due to realisation of a number of projects, including development of Ust-Luga port, construction of a container port hub in Baltiysk and a terminal for LNG handling in Teriberka settlement (Murmansk region) and development of an oil-loading terminal for the ESPO in Vostochny port, etc.
By the end of 2015 it is planned to fulfill the Russian economy’s need for foreign trade transportation as well as to create a 20% reserve of port capacities necessary to increase manufacturing and develop international cargo transit.
Also, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages construction of 90 support vessels (ice-breakers, wrecking, environmental, and hydrographic ships), coast objects of basin wrecking management and the purchase of deep-sea mobile universal equipment. To develop sea ports, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages investment of RUR 182 billion from the federal budget and RUR 449 billion from non-budget sources, which exceeds the volume of the previous programme’s financing by 43% (with means from the federal budget growing by 3.6 times).
A distinguishing feature of the subprogramme is that the realisation of large complex projects is separated into another subprogramme “Development of Transport Services Export”, in the framework of which the ports of Murmansk, Novorossiysk, Vostochny and Taman will be constructed (the share from the federal budget is RUR 181.1 billion, with RUR 248 billion from non-budget sources).
– Speaking about the scaled infrastructure projects, we must mention the issue of coordinating different transport modes. Often such projects are carried out without regard to the plans of adjacent transport modes. As a result, the constructed capacities turned out to be underloaded…
– Naturally, a sea port is a transport junction where several transport modes interact. That is why it should be remembered that the good results of most Russian ports’ work are directly connected to the fulfillment of the measures for modernising and enlarging the port railway infrastructure, in particular at the stations. That is why the expansion of the port infrastructure is impossible without coordination with investment programmes in other sectors. 
Unfortunately, not all the projects being developed are so complex, so not all transport modes could be used efficiently there. This approach envisages that the projects will be profitable for only one interested party. Neither parallel projects in adjacent sectors nor regional interests are taken into consideration. 
Under these conditions, it is especially important to coordinate development of all transport modes, which is envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”. Its creators understood that different transport sectors cannot develop separately from one another.
By the way, this problem occurred when the tender on special economic zones for port type organisations was held last year. Most of the applications for sea ports were highly rated by experts. Simultaneously, the experts revealed the need for better development of the tender issues, especially those connected with the evaluation of  a real need for outer infrastructure in the zones (railways and roads, energy supply, possible deepening of water areas).
– And what about the borders in the sea ports? Their lack used to be one of the most important problems in the activity of Russian ports. As far as I know, much has been done in this area this year…
– In accordance with Article 5 of the law “On Sea Ports in the Russian Federation”, the bills on setting the borders of 66 sea ports are being developed. At the moment, the RF Government has set the borders of four sea ports – Vysotsk, Saint Petersburg Passenger Port, Varandey and Prigorodnoe. The bill on setting the border of the sea port of Taman has been brought to the Government. The bills on the borders of three sea ports (Vitino, Eisk, and Anapa) are being examined by the federal executive bodies in charge. The materials for setting the borders of 16 other ports are almost ready (the ports are Vostochny, Primorsk, Kavkaz, Ust-Luga, Novorossiysk, Kaliningrad, Saint Petersburg, Murmansk, Tuapse, Sochi, Vyborg, Kandalaksha, Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Cape of Lazarev, De-Kastri, Gelenjik). The work of defining the borders of the largest ports is to be completed before the end of 2008.
When preparing materials to define the borders of a sea port, the largest difficulties are caused by the need to form cadastral maps of each of the areas included in the port as well as to describe the borders of the territories and water areas of the former sea fishing ports and any other objects inside port boundaries in accordance with RF President’s Order № 1682 dating from September 22, 2007.  
Setting port borders is closely connected with the development of RF territorial planning. Such schemes, in terms of sea ports development, will be elaborated in accordance with the events envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)” and other federal target programmes.
There Must Not Be Too Much State Regulation 
 
– What is being done to improve state regulation in the sector of sea ports? Market players often say that it is necessary to abolish state regulation of services provided by natural monopolies. What is your opinion?
– Currently, in the ports there is competition in the sector of loading and unloading works and other services connected with them. Naturally, state regulation often restrains further development of competition and limits the work of ports included in the Register of natural monopolists in comparison with the companies to which the regulation is not applied.
The presence of competitors, not bound by such control, makes the state-regulated subjects’ activity less efficient and does not allow use of a flexible price policy to become more attractive to cargo owners. Meanwhile, there is the threat of an abrupt tariff increase.
I believe that state regulation should be abolished only in some ports and some of them should be allowed to regulate their tariff policy by themselves. In every case, the individual conditions and the need for railway tariffs regulation must be considered.  
– Have any issues remained in terms of concluding contracts on renting hydro-technical facilities, which are the federal property?
– There is one such issue concerning the order of renting out federal real estate. The bill on this problem is now being discussed. The agreement with the Russian Ministry of Economy envisages that after the bill is approved, all the contracts on the berths rented and to be rented will be re-concluded.
Federal state unitary enterprise (FGUP) Rosmorport, which manages 521 berths, concluded 7 long-term contracts on federal property rent for 19 berths in the ports of Saint Petersburg, Vysotsk, Olya, Eisk and Taman.
– The port sector is considered one of the most attractive for private capital. Does it use the concession mechanism and the opportunities given by the Investment Fund? Are there restraining factors of a normative and legislative nature?
– As for concession contracts, there are some problems which may be solved at the legislative level. According to the law “On Concession Agreements”, when an agreement is concluded, its object to be reconstructed must be the property of the concession holder and no third party is to have a right on it. Thus, before a tender agreement is announced, the object must be brought out of the property or operative management of a state or a municipal enterprise. There appears a situation where there is no-one in charge of an object’s maintenance from the day of the decision on holding a tender on a concession agreement to the date the agreement is concluded. It is offered to determine legally that the person in charge of maintenance during this period is the one who owned and used it before the tender was announced.
As for investment projects in sea transport funded by the Investment Fund, we are now examining a contract on joint financing the investment project “Construction and Further Exploitation of the Transshipment Complex Yug-2 in the Commercial Sea Port Ust-Luga.”
To Stand Up for National Interests
 
– What is your evaluation of the competitiveness of Russian ports in terms of the level of services provided to ship owners and cargo owners? Is it possible to assess whether the competitiveness of Russian ports has increased lately?
– First of all, it is clients who evaluate the quality of port services. The growth of foreign trade cargo throughput in Russian ports, especially in comparison with the decreasing share in this type of cargo handling in neighbouring countries – Ukraine and the Baltic states – proves their competitiveness in terms of the level of services. Russian portmen have done a lot to reach international standards. Modern terminals were built, existing capacities were reconstructed, handling equipment was upgraded and renewed in many ports and dredging was completed at berths and entrance passages. Railwaymen enlarged port stations and railway approaches to ports.
Simultaneously, infrastructure objects were put into operation in the sea ports, new models of control using advanced IT equipment and the latest scientific elaborations were implemented. All these made for an increase in the thoroughness and quality of the servicing of vessels and wagons.
To develop sea port competitiveness, the state should create favourable conditions for the companies involved in port infrastructure development, and mechanisms of speeding up development of port infrastructure. The list of the most important tasks includes improvement of port management methods and creation of a single concept for national transport development.
In order to fulfill the tasks, a raft of measures were developed and approved at a meeting of the RF Government in September 2007. It is aimed at development of sea ports and special port economic zones. The Federal law “On the Sea Ports in the RF”, adopted in November 2007, gave an impulse to creation of a significant number of norms aimed at increasing the competitiveness of Russian ports and attracting investment into their development. 
In conclusion, I would like to say that the main task of the Federal Agency of Sea and River Transport is the support of further development of the transport sector and the country’s economy as a whole. We are to upgrade the economy to a new level of development, create an innovation economy and economic growth and welfare for the Russian people by providing access to safe and quality transport services. Thus, the geographical peculiarities of Russia will be turned into a competitive advantage. 
By Ivan Sergeev
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            [SECTION_META_DESCRIPTION] => <img src="/ufiles/image/rus/partner/2008/4/1.jpg" border="1" alt="Alexander Davydenko" title="Alexander Davydenko" hspace="5" width="120" height="150" align="left" />A lot of changes have taken place in the sphere of Russian transport in the last two years – large infrastructure projects, normative and legislative base improvements, development of new programme documents. All these have made the Russian port sector enter a new level of activity, Alexander Davydenko, Head of the Federal Agency for Sea and River Transport, is sure.
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Priorities Are Set
– Mr Davydenko, what priorities stand out in the state policy in the sea and river transport sector?
– Last May the RF Government in its decree approved the new federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”, which includes subprogramme “Sea Transport” with the total financing volume of RUR 631 billion. This document is aimed at speeding development of sea transport infrastructure to provide necessary rates of Russian economy’s growth.
According to the target figures mentioned in the subprogramme, cargo handling volumes in the Russian ports are to grow to 774 million tons – by 1.5 times more than in 2009. Such results will be achieved due to realisation of a number of projects, including development of Ust-Luga port, construction of a container port hub in Baltiysk and a terminal for LNG handling in Teriberka settlement (Murmansk region) and development of an oil-loading terminal for the ESPO in Vostochny port, etc.
By the end of 2015 it is planned to fulfill the Russian economy’s need for foreign trade transportation as well as to create a 20% reserve of port capacities necessary to increase manufacturing and develop international cargo transit.
Also, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages construction of 90 support vessels (ice-breakers, wrecking, environmental, and hydrographic ships), coast objects of basin wrecking management and the purchase of deep-sea mobile universal equipment. To develop sea ports, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages investment of RUR 182 billion from the federal budget and RUR 449 billion from non-budget sources, which exceeds the volume of the previous programme’s financing by 43% (with means from the federal budget growing by 3.6 times).
A distinguishing feature of the subprogramme is that the realisation of large complex projects is separated into another subprogramme “Development of Transport Services Export”, in the framework of which the ports of Murmansk, Novorossiysk, Vostochny and Taman will be constructed (the share from the federal budget is RUR 181.1 billion, with RUR 248 billion from non-budget sources).
– Speaking about the scaled infrastructure projects, we must mention the issue of coordinating different transport modes. Often such projects are carried out without regard to the plans of adjacent transport modes. As a result, the constructed capacities turned out to be underloaded…
– Naturally, a sea port is a transport junction where several transport modes interact. That is why it should be remembered that the good results of most Russian ports’ work are directly connected to the fulfillment of the measures for modernising and enlarging the port railway infrastructure, in particular at the stations. That is why the expansion of the port infrastructure is impossible without coordination with investment programmes in other sectors. 
Unfortunately, not all the projects being developed are so complex, so not all transport modes could be used efficiently there. This approach envisages that the projects will be profitable for only one interested party. Neither parallel projects in adjacent sectors nor regional interests are taken into consideration. 
Under these conditions, it is especially important to coordinate development of all transport modes, which is envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”. Its creators understood that different transport sectors cannot develop separately from one another.
By the way, this problem occurred when the tender on special economic zones for port type organisations was held last year. Most of the applications for sea ports were highly rated by experts. Simultaneously, the experts revealed the need for better development of the tender issues, especially those connected with the evaluation of  a real need for outer infrastructure in the zones (railways and roads, energy supply, possible deepening of water areas).
– And what about the borders in the sea ports? Their lack used to be one of the most important problems in the activity of Russian ports. As far as I know, much has been done in this area this year…
– In accordance with Article 5 of the law “On Sea Ports in the Russian Federation”, the bills on setting the borders of 66 sea ports are being developed. At the moment, the RF Government has set the borders of four sea ports – Vysotsk, Saint Petersburg Passenger Port, Varandey and Prigorodnoe. The bill on setting the border of the sea port of Taman has been brought to the Government. The bills on the borders of three sea ports (Vitino, Eisk, and Anapa) are being examined by the federal executive bodies in charge. The materials for setting the borders of 16 other ports are almost ready (the ports are Vostochny, Primorsk, Kavkaz, Ust-Luga, Novorossiysk, Kaliningrad, Saint Petersburg, Murmansk, Tuapse, Sochi, Vyborg, Kandalaksha, Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Cape of Lazarev, De-Kastri, Gelenjik). The work of defining the borders of the largest ports is to be completed before the end of 2008.
When preparing materials to define the borders of a sea port, the largest difficulties are caused by the need to form cadastral maps of each of the areas included in the port as well as to describe the borders of the territories and water areas of the former sea fishing ports and any other objects inside port boundaries in accordance with RF President’s Order № 1682 dating from September 22, 2007.  
Setting port borders is closely connected with the development of RF territorial planning. Such schemes, in terms of sea ports development, will be elaborated in accordance with the events envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)” and other federal target programmes.
There Must Not Be Too Much State Regulation 
 
– What is being done to improve state regulation in the sector of sea ports? Market players often say that it is necessary to abolish state regulation of services provided by natural monopolies. What is your opinion?
– Currently, in the ports there is competition in the sector of loading and unloading works and other services connected with them. Naturally, state regulation often restrains further development of competition and limits the work of ports included in the Register of natural monopolists in comparison with the companies to which the regulation is not applied.
The presence of competitors, not bound by such control, makes the state-regulated subjects’ activity less efficient and does not allow use of a flexible price policy to become more attractive to cargo owners. Meanwhile, there is the threat of an abrupt tariff increase.
I believe that state regulation should be abolished only in some ports and some of them should be allowed to regulate their tariff policy by themselves. In every case, the individual conditions and the need for railway tariffs regulation must be considered.  
– Have any issues remained in terms of concluding contracts on renting hydro-technical facilities, which are the federal property?
– There is one such issue concerning the order of renting out federal real estate. The bill on this problem is now being discussed. The agreement with the Russian Ministry of Economy envisages that after the bill is approved, all the contracts on the berths rented and to be rented will be re-concluded.
Federal state unitary enterprise (FGUP) Rosmorport, which manages 521 berths, concluded 7 long-term contracts on federal property rent for 19 berths in the ports of Saint Petersburg, Vysotsk, Olya, Eisk and Taman.
– The port sector is considered one of the most attractive for private capital. Does it use the concession mechanism and the opportunities given by the Investment Fund? Are there restraining factors of a normative and legislative nature?
– As for concession contracts, there are some problems which may be solved at the legislative level. According to the law “On Concession Agreements”, when an agreement is concluded, its object to be reconstructed must be the property of the concession holder and no third party is to have a right on it. Thus, before a tender agreement is announced, the object must be brought out of the property or operative management of a state or a municipal enterprise. There appears a situation where there is no-one in charge of an object’s maintenance from the day of the decision on holding a tender on a concession agreement to the date the agreement is concluded. It is offered to determine legally that the person in charge of maintenance during this period is the one who owned and used it before the tender was announced.
As for investment projects in sea transport funded by the Investment Fund, we are now examining a contract on joint financing the investment project “Construction and Further Exploitation of the Transshipment Complex Yug-2 in the Commercial Sea Port Ust-Luga.”
To Stand Up for National Interests
 
– What is your evaluation of the competitiveness of Russian ports in terms of the level of services provided to ship owners and cargo owners? Is it possible to assess whether the competitiveness of Russian ports has increased lately?
– First of all, it is clients who evaluate the quality of port services. The growth of foreign trade cargo throughput in Russian ports, especially in comparison with the decreasing share in this type of cargo handling in neighbouring countries – Ukraine and the Baltic states – proves their competitiveness in terms of the level of services. Russian portmen have done a lot to reach international standards. Modern terminals were built, existing capacities were reconstructed, handling equipment was upgraded and renewed in many ports and dredging was completed at berths and entrance passages. Railwaymen enlarged port stations and railway approaches to ports.
Simultaneously, infrastructure objects were put into operation in the sea ports, new models of control using advanced IT equipment and the latest scientific elaborations were implemented. All these made for an increase in the thoroughness and quality of the servicing of vessels and wagons.
To develop sea port competitiveness, the state should create favourable conditions for the companies involved in port infrastructure development, and mechanisms of speeding up development of port infrastructure. The list of the most important tasks includes improvement of port management methods and creation of a single concept for national transport development.
In order to fulfill the tasks, a raft of measures were developed and approved at a meeting of the RF Government in September 2007. It is aimed at development of sea ports and special port economic zones. The Federal law “On the Sea Ports in the RF”, adopted in November 2007, gave an impulse to creation of a significant number of norms aimed at increasing the competitiveness of Russian ports and attracting investment into their development. 
In conclusion, I would like to say that the main task of the Federal Agency of Sea and River Transport is the support of further development of the transport sector and the country’s economy as a whole. We are to upgrade the economy to a new level of development, create an innovation economy and economic growth and welfare for the Russian people by providing access to safe and quality transport services. Thus, the geographical peculiarities of Russia will be turned into a competitive advantage. 
By Ivan Sergeev
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Priorities Are Set
– Mr Davydenko, what priorities stand out in the state policy in the sea and river transport sector?
– Last May the RF Government in its decree approved the new federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”, which includes subprogramme “Sea Transport” with the total financing volume of RUR 631 billion. This document is aimed at speeding development of sea transport infrastructure to provide necessary rates of Russian economy’s growth.
According to the target figures mentioned in the subprogramme, cargo handling volumes in the Russian ports are to grow to 774 million tons – by 1.5 times more than in 2009. Such results will be achieved due to realisation of a number of projects, including development of Ust-Luga port, construction of a container port hub in Baltiysk and a terminal for LNG handling in Teriberka settlement (Murmansk region) and development of an oil-loading terminal for the ESPO in Vostochny port, etc.
By the end of 2015 it is planned to fulfill the Russian economy’s need for foreign trade transportation as well as to create a 20% reserve of port capacities necessary to increase manufacturing and develop international cargo transit.
Also, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages construction of 90 support vessels (ice-breakers, wrecking, environmental, and hydrographic ships), coast objects of basin wrecking management and the purchase of deep-sea mobile universal equipment. To develop sea ports, the subprogramme “Sea Transport” envisages investment of RUR 182 billion from the federal budget and RUR 449 billion from non-budget sources, which exceeds the volume of the previous programme’s financing by 43% (with means from the federal budget growing by 3.6 times).
A distinguishing feature of the subprogramme is that the realisation of large complex projects is separated into another subprogramme “Development of Transport Services Export”, in the framework of which the ports of Murmansk, Novorossiysk, Vostochny and Taman will be constructed (the share from the federal budget is RUR 181.1 billion, with RUR 248 billion from non-budget sources).
– Speaking about the scaled infrastructure projects, we must mention the issue of coordinating different transport modes. Often such projects are carried out without regard to the plans of adjacent transport modes. As a result, the constructed capacities turned out to be underloaded…
– Naturally, a sea port is a transport junction where several transport modes interact. That is why it should be remembered that the good results of most Russian ports’ work are directly connected to the fulfillment of the measures for modernising and enlarging the port railway infrastructure, in particular at the stations. That is why the expansion of the port infrastructure is impossible without coordination with investment programmes in other sectors. 
Unfortunately, not all the projects being developed are so complex, so not all transport modes could be used efficiently there. This approach envisages that the projects will be profitable for only one interested party. Neither parallel projects in adjacent sectors nor regional interests are taken into consideration. 
Under these conditions, it is especially important to coordinate development of all transport modes, which is envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)”. Its creators understood that different transport sectors cannot develop separately from one another.
By the way, this problem occurred when the tender on special economic zones for port type organisations was held last year. Most of the applications for sea ports were highly rated by experts. Simultaneously, the experts revealed the need for better development of the tender issues, especially those connected with the evaluation of  a real need for outer infrastructure in the zones (railways and roads, energy supply, possible deepening of water areas).
– And what about the borders in the sea ports? Their lack used to be one of the most important problems in the activity of Russian ports. As far as I know, much has been done in this area this year…
– In accordance with Article 5 of the law “On Sea Ports in the Russian Federation”, the bills on setting the borders of 66 sea ports are being developed. At the moment, the RF Government has set the borders of four sea ports – Vysotsk, Saint Petersburg Passenger Port, Varandey and Prigorodnoe. The bill on setting the border of the sea port of Taman has been brought to the Government. The bills on the borders of three sea ports (Vitino, Eisk, and Anapa) are being examined by the federal executive bodies in charge. The materials for setting the borders of 16 other ports are almost ready (the ports are Vostochny, Primorsk, Kavkaz, Ust-Luga, Novorossiysk, Kaliningrad, Saint Petersburg, Murmansk, Tuapse, Sochi, Vyborg, Kandalaksha, Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, Cape of Lazarev, De-Kastri, Gelenjik). The work of defining the borders of the largest ports is to be completed before the end of 2008.
When preparing materials to define the borders of a sea port, the largest difficulties are caused by the need to form cadastral maps of each of the areas included in the port as well as to describe the borders of the territories and water areas of the former sea fishing ports and any other objects inside port boundaries in accordance with RF President’s Order № 1682 dating from September 22, 2007.  
Setting port borders is closely connected with the development of RF territorial planning. Such schemes, in terms of sea ports development, will be elaborated in accordance with the events envisaged in the federal target programme “Russian Transport System Development (2010-2015)” and other federal target programmes.
There Must Not Be Too Much State Regulation 
 
– What is being done to improve state regulation in the sector of sea ports? Market players often say that it is necessary to abolish state regulation of services provided by natural monopolies. What is your opinion?
– Currently, in the ports there is competition in the sector of loading and unloading works and other services connected with them. Naturally, state regulation often restrains further development of competition and limits the work of ports included in the Register of natural monopolists in comparison with the companies to which the regulation is not applied.
The presence of competitors, not bound by such control, makes the state-regulated subjects’ activity less efficient and does not allow use of a flexible price policy to become more attractive to cargo owners. Meanwhile, there is the threat of an abrupt tariff increase.
I believe that state regulation should be abolished only in some ports and some of them should be allowed to regulate their tariff policy by themselves. In every case, the individual conditions and the need for railway tariffs regulation must be considered.  
– Have any issues remained in terms of concluding contracts on renting hydro-technical facilities, which are the federal property?
– There is one such issue concerning the order of renting out federal real estate. The bill on this problem is now being discussed. The agreement with the Russian Ministry of Economy envisages that after the bill is approved, all the contracts on the berths rented and to be rented will be re-concluded.
Federal state unitary enterprise (FGUP) Rosmorport, which manages 521 berths, concluded 7 long-term contracts on federal property rent for 19 berths in the ports of Saint Petersburg, Vysotsk, Olya, Eisk and Taman.
– The port sector is considered one of the most attractive for private capital. Does it use the concession mechanism and the opportunities given by the Investment Fund? Are there restraining factors of a normative and legislative nature?
– As for concession contracts, there are some problems which may be solved at the legislative level. According to the law “On Concession Agreements”, when an agreement is concluded, its object to be reconstructed must be the property of the concession holder and no third party is to have a right on it. Thus, before a tender agreement is announced, the object must be brought out of the property or operative management of a state or a municipal enterprise. There appears a situation where there is no-one in charge of an object’s maintenance from the day of the decision on holding a tender on a concession agreement to the date the agreement is concluded. It is offered to determine legally that the person in charge of maintenance during this period is the one who owned and used it before the tender was announced.
As for investment projects in sea transport funded by the Investment Fund, we are now examining a contract on joint financing the investment project “Construction and Further Exploitation of the Transshipment Complex Yug-2 in the Commercial Sea Port Ust-Luga.”
To Stand Up for National Interests
 
– What is your evaluation of the competitiveness of Russian ports in terms of the level of services provided to ship owners and cargo owners? Is it possible to assess whether the competitiveness of Russian ports has increased lately?
– First of all, it is clients who evaluate the quality of port services. The growth of foreign trade cargo throughput in Russian ports, especially in comparison with the decreasing share in this type of cargo handling in neighbouring countries – Ukraine and the Baltic states – proves their competitiveness in terms of the level of services. Russian portmen have done a lot to reach international standards. Modern terminals were built, existing capacities were reconstructed, handling equipment was upgraded and renewed in many ports and dredging was completed at berths and entrance passages. Railwaymen enlarged port stations and railway approaches to ports.
Simultaneously, infrastructure objects were put into operation in the sea ports, new models of control using advanced IT equipment and the latest scientific elaborations were implemented. All these made for an increase in the thoroughness and quality of the servicing of vessels and wagons.
To develop sea port competitiveness, the state should create favourable conditions for the companies involved in port infrastructure development, and mechanisms of speeding up development of port infrastructure. The list of the most important tasks includes improvement of port management methods and creation of a single concept for national transport development.
In order to fulfill the tasks, a raft of measures were developed and approved at a meeting of the RF Government in September 2007. It is aimed at development of sea ports and special port economic zones. The Federal law “On the Sea Ports in the RF”, adopted in November 2007, gave an impulse to creation of a significant number of norms aimed at increasing the competitiveness of Russian ports and attracting investment into their development. 
In conclusion, I would like to say that the main task of the Federal Agency of Sea and River Transport is the support of further development of the transport sector and the country’s economy as a whole. We are to upgrade the economy to a new level of development, create an innovation economy and economic growth and welfare for the Russian people by providing access to safe and quality transport services. Thus, the geographical peculiarities of Russia will be turned into a competitive advantage. 
By Ivan Sergeev
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