Transshipment of mineral fertilizers by Russian seaports decreased by 21.3% in January-September 2006 against year-on-year result amounting to 8.5 million tons, yuga.ru reports. Transshipment of mineral fertilizers in Novorossijsk decreased in January-September by 32.4% to 1 million tons. In 2005 general shipment of mineral fertilizers by sea transport totaled 14.7 million tons.
According to Ludmila Kuznetsova, senior research assistant of Soyuzmorniiprojekt’s department of marine transport development, this decrease should be first of all attributed to growing export of mineral fertilizers by land as well as by growing export of mineral fertilizers via ports of Ukraine and Baltic countries. In 2005, transshipment of mineral fertilizers via Baltic ports totaled 5.5 million tons, via Ukrainian ports – 2.9 million tons. Kuznetsova says specific weight of the ports of neighboring states in total transshipment of Russian fertilizers is decreasing gradually though preserving its high level. In general, specific weight of the ports of neighboring states made 37% in 2005, and 51% in 2003.