MOSCOW, 22 April (BelTA) - An agreement to build a multifunctional facility for transshipment of mineral fertilizers, oil products and also container and other cargoes from Belarus on the grounds of the new port of Lavna was signed in Murmansk Oblast of Russia. The document was signed by Governor of Murmansk Oblast Andrei Chibis and Director General of the Arctic Gates Marine Terminal Andrei Bunakov, BelTA has learned from the Ministry of Information Policy of Murmansk Oblast.
"Together with our Belarusian partners, following the instructions by Russian President Vladimir Putin, we have formalized the launch of work on a large terminal for transshipment of Belarusian-made goods. This event was preceded by painstaking joint work by a team from the Republic of Belarus and a team of the government of Murmansk Oblast on the assessment of the land plot and railway infrastructure. This issue was worked out during the visit of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko. We went through all the parameters in detail and decided to get the new port project moving," Andrei Chibis noted.
The governor noted that the construction of a marine terminal for transshipment of goods will make Murmansk Oblast more attractive for investments and create new jobs. "For Murmansk Oblast the construction of the port heralds, among other things, the development of the most important investment projects, an increase in the capacity of the railway infrastructure. Now we are considering the possibility of transshipping 25 million tonnes of cargoes per year," the governor said.
Thanks to this port, Belarus will receive a year-round transport corridor for delivering its goods and cargoes to foreign markets. Andrei Bunakov, General Director of the Arctic Gates Marine Terminal, stressed that the construction of a marine terminal for transshipment of goods will expand the export potential of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation, provide access to the World Ocean along the Northern Sea Route.
"We have set ourselves tight deadlines both for the project feasibility study and for the commissioning of the first facilities. We assume that the first cargoes will begin to arrive in 2028," Andrei Bunakov said.