Volume of freight carried by Russia’s inland water transport in 2018 totaled 116.2 million tonnes, down 2% YoY

The volume of freight carried by Russia’s inland water transport in 2018 totaled 116.2 million tonnes, down 2% year-on-year, IAA PortNews correspondent cites Yury Tsvetkov, Deputy Minister of Transport – head of Rosmorrechflot (Federal Marine and River Transport Agency) as saying at the extended meeting of Rosmorrechflot Board held in Moscow on 27 March 2019.

Yury Tsvetkov primarily attributes the decrease to transport limits near Gorodets, reduction of demand for construction cargo, reduced railway rates for transportation of oil products by the routes parallel to inland water ways in summer. 

Besides, the operation of shipping companies is influenced by the surge of marine fuel prices. The increased expenses entailed deterioration in the financial position of shipping companies in 2018, which can slow down construction of ships at Russian shipyard.

Volga Basin accounts for the bulk of freight volumes (35.4%), Moscow Basin – 13.5%, Azov-Don Basin – 10.6%, Volga-Baltic – 12.5%, Ob-Irtysh – 5.7%. 

18 million tonnes of cargo was shipped to the Far North areas, 3% more as compared with that carried in 2017. Vital cargoes under the state order totaled some 1.7 million tonnes including 0.6 million tonnes of coal and oil products.

Cargo turnover at river ports fell by 8.5% to 126.5 million tonnes with liquid bulk cargo having decreased by 5.6% and dry cargo – by 8.6%. In river ports, construction materials account for 75.3% of the total throughput, liquid bulk cargo – for 5.5%.

Passenger turnover decreased to 12.3 million (versus 12.6 million passengers in 2017).

According to the head of Rosmorrechflot, the most urgent infrastructure development project in the segment of inland water transport is the reconstruction of hydraulic engineering structures – White-Sea – Baltic Canal (locks NoNo 8, 17); reconstruction of hydraulic engineering structure in the Volga Basin (locks NoNo 21-24 of the Samara hydrosystem); further construction of Bagayevsky hydrosystem’s Phase I; development of project documentation for construction of Nizhegorodsky hydrosystem’s Phase II.