National Container Terminal to build container terminal in the freeport of Riga
The Freeport of Riga is working on a second container terminal and expects to open it in the next few years.
Edgars Suna, head of the strategic planning unit of the freeport authority, says an agreement for leasing the land has been signed with National Container Terminal, which represents First Stevedore of St Petersburg.
The agreement covers an area of about 160 hectares next to the existing Baltic Container Terminal.
Mr Suna says the authority has yet to receive technical data and final sketches. Initially, First Stevedore envisaged annual handling capacity up to 2m teu, but that has been considerably reduced.
He believes refrigerated cargo would be a promising segment for any existing or future terminal operator to focus on and Riga could establish itself as a handler of food supplies for the Moscow area.
Present total annual handling capacity of the port is about 45m tonnes. Last year total handling was 25.4m tonnes. Volume has grown steadily since 1999.
Some two-thirds of this is transit cargo to and from Russia and Mr Suna says: 'We have to retain these transit flows.'
Edgars Suna, head of the strategic planning unit of the freeport authority, says an agreement for leasing the land has been signed with National Container Terminal, which represents First Stevedore of St Petersburg.
The agreement covers an area of about 160 hectares next to the existing Baltic Container Terminal.
Mr Suna says the authority has yet to receive technical data and final sketches. Initially, First Stevedore envisaged annual handling capacity up to 2m teu, but that has been considerably reduced.
He believes refrigerated cargo would be a promising segment for any existing or future terminal operator to focus on and Riga could establish itself as a handler of food supplies for the Moscow area.
Present total annual handling capacity of the port is about 45m tonnes. Last year total handling was 25.4m tonnes. Volume has grown steadily since 1999.
Some two-thirds of this is transit cargo to and from Russia and Mr Suna says: 'We have to retain these transit flows.'