Hazy hub

The project on creation of a new port in the Kaliningrad region will be efficient only if it functions as a hub handling ocean going container carriers, the project developers believe.  According to the Directorate of the State Customer for Marine Transport Development Programmes FSE, optimal capacity of the new port’s container terminal should be 12 mln TEUs per year with total cargo turnover of 131.5 million tonnes. However, market players are not sure about economic efficiency of the project.

Ocean-scale dreams

The project on creation of a new deepwater port in the Kaliningrad region is at the stage of investment justification now. The state customer of the project is RorMorRechFlot, the customer is the Directorate of the State Customer for Marine Transport Development Programmes FSE, the general designer – GT Morstroi CJSC.

As FSE Director General Anatli Paperny said at the Baltic Transport Forum held last week in Kaliningrad, it would be unreasonable to build the port with consideration of cargoes being handled by the existing terminals of Kaliningrad.  “With the most favorable development of the situation, the new port’s turnover may total 20-25 million tonnes provided that it takes over all cargoes from the existing terminals. Such a throughput does not pay it way for construction of a new port, highway approaches and engineering infrastructure. 30,000-50,000 dwt vessels are enough for such a turnover which could be reached with much less costs through reconstruction of the coastal part of Kaliningrad seaway canal and construction of port terminals along it,” Anatli Paperny underlines.

According to FSE calculations, it would be more reasonable to build a port hub designed for handling of ocean-going container carriers and transshipment of containers to feeder vessels. “There is a good background for this. In 2007, container turnover of the Baltic ports reached almost 6 TEU including over 2.2 million TEU of Russian foreign trade segment,” Anatoli Paperny explains.  With an eye to handling of ocean-going container carriers the share of more expensive feeder transportation could be reduced in container supply chain. “Competitiveness of the Baltic hub is ensured by considerable difference of freight rates for ocean and feeder shipping,” FSE reports. “Transportation of one container from Hamburg to St. Petersburg per one mile is 4 times as much as that for Shanghai to Hamburg transportation. Having transferred the transshipment point (ocean-to-feeder carrier) of a 20-feet container going from Shanghai to St. Petersburg from Hamburg to Kaliningrad would same over 200 dollars.”

There are four alternatives of a new port location are under consideration today: open shore of the Baltic Sea (Vzmorje),  western side of the Primorskaja Bay (Baltijsk), eastern side of the Primorskaja Bay (Svetly) and Severny Cape area of the Balga peninsula (Balga). Total design volume of investments varies from RUR 263 bln to RUR 314 bln depending on the location. Federal money is to account for a little bit less than 30% of the total financing.

Searching for sense

However, will such expenses pay their way? According to Igor Nosikov, head of agency and forwarding department of North-Western Marine Company, the plan to focus on transshipment of containers from ocean-going carriers gives rise to some doubts. “First of all, foreign ports of the Baltic Sea can also transship containers from ocean going container carriers. They do not need to come to a berth as it can be done at the outer anchorage.  Secondly, why are those carriers not to go to Ust-Luga port in view economizing on feeder transportation? It would be more economically reasonable as compared with their handling in the Kaliningrad region as we mean the flow of containers oriented for Russia. Besides, Russian legislation and standards do not allow for as fast unloading of vessels, customs clearance and border procedures as in foreign ports. It discourages foreign customers and partners, Igor Nosikov told PortNews IAA.

Actually, foreign ports of the Baltic Sea have commenced investment projects aimed at handling of ocean-going container carriers. A 3-mln TEU container terminal was built in Gdynia in 2007 with participation of British investors. It is capable of handling the largest container carriers able to enter the Baltic Sea.

Port Muuga authorities and Chinese cargo owners have come to an agreement on arrangement of a direct service though the crisis interfered with the plans.

A 3-mln TEU container terminal is also being built in Russian port of Ust-Luga the water area of which is 17 meters deep.