Port slowdown

In 2008, throughput of St. Petersburg port stayed at the level of the previous year. Unlike other years when cargo turnover used to grow by 10-20% per year, in 2008 the port’s throughput increased by only 1% thus making it not possible for the port to overpass the level of 60 million tonnes

 Container growth

According to Peotr Parinov, Harbour Master of St. Petersburg port, low growth rate of the port should be attributed to lower business activity in the latest quarter of the previous year. According to Administration of Big Port of St. Petersburg, the port’s stevedoring companies handled 59.945 million tonnes of cargo in 2008. Maximal growth – 9% - was registered in the sector of container transportation. In 2008, the port handled 1,983,110 TEU which accounted for 31.1% f the port’s total throughput.

The leader of St. Petersburg container market is still First Container Terminal (FCT, owned by National Container Company). In the past year its throughput exceeded 1 mln TEU. In December, the MSC IRIS owned by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) delivered the millionth container to the Terminal. All in all FCT terminal handled 1.07 mln TEU (+11.8%, year-on-year) though in December it decreased the turnover by 2.7%, year-on-year.

As it was noted by Aleksei Sidorenko, Commercial Director of  First Container Terminal CJSC, “considering the growth rates of the terminals in the Neva Bay as a whole, total annual growth will make hundreds of thousands TEU, so 2-million throughput can be reached in a couple of years”.

The second busiest terminal of the port is Petrolesport OJSC (PLP, owned by N-Trans Group). In 2008 it increased the turnover by 44% despite the decrease of scrap metal and timber handling. Nevertheless, total cargo handling of PLP grew by 8.1% to 7.5 mln t.   

Activity decline

The largest fall among stevedoring companies – 8.6% - was demonstrated by Sea Port of Saint Petersburg OJSC. According to the Group, in the 12-month period, its companies handled 11 million tonnes of cargo. First Stevedoring Company handled 5.1 million tonnes (-5%); Second Stevedoring Company – 1.7 mln t (-16%); Forth Stevedoring Company – 4.1 mln t (-2%).

During 8 months of its operation, automobile terminal of Third Stevedoring Company handled over 42,000 cars. The Group’s transshipment of general cargo amounted to 6.5 million tonnes, dry loose and bulk cargo – 4.5 million tonnes.

The Group attributes the decrease to lower business activity of shippers due to decreasing demand for goods as well as to irregular delivery of railway wagons for coal transshipment.

The decrease was almost in all sectors excluding oil cargo. Transshipment of liquid bulk cargo grew by 3% to 15.1 mln t including 11.8 mln t (78.1% of all liquid bulk cargo) handed by Petersburg Oil Terminal.

According to Administration of Big Port of St. Petersburg, the maximal fall was in the sector of timber (-54%) and loose cargo (-36%). Generalcargo and dry bulk lost 1% each.