Cargo traffic at the combined port of HaminaKotka of Finland in January-June 2012 shrank by 10.3% year-on-year to 7,118,210 tons, the Port Authority statistics said.
Six-month volume of exports fell 6.8%, imports dropped by 16.6%. In the reporting period, the port saw a 20-percent growth in transit cargo and a 2.8% gain in container traffic.
The Finnish ports Kotkan Satama Oy and Haminan Satama Oy merged under a new name on May 1, 2011. As a result, the HaminaKotka has turned into the largest export port of the country. In 2011, cargo throughput at the port rose 2.3% year-over-year to 16.05 million tons.
Kotka is located some 50 kilometers from the Russian Federation border, 280 km off St. Petersburg, 1000 km from Moscow. Port of Kotka comprises ports of Mussalo, Hietanen, Kantasatama, berth Puolanlaituri (Polish berth), berth Halla, and also port premises Sunila. In 2010, the port of Kotka handled about 9,2 million tons.
Port of Hamina is the eastern port of Finland located 35 km from the Russian border. In 2010, cargo throughput of the port totaled 3.6 million tons.