MURMANSK, April, 23. /TASS/. A Belarus company will build a large port in Murmansk by 2028 to handle cargo from the republic. The planned annual capacity is 25-30 million tons of cargo, the Arctic Gate Marine Terminal LLC's Director General Andrey Bunakov told reporters.

"As for the handling capacity: we expect to plan the volumes of up to 25-30 million tons per year. I confirm this figure, and we will work on it. It will be a multi-modal complex, and we plan different cargoes, both bulk and petroleum products. Besides, we will consider a container terminal <...>. We plan that in 2028 the first cargoes will arrive," he said.

According to the Murmansk Region's Governor Andrey Chibis, the Arctic Gate Marine Terminal Company has been registered in the Kola District and in the future it plans to obtain the status of a business resident at the Capital of the Arctic advance-development territory. The investor will receive extensive support for the project implementation.

"For the Murmansk Region, this [the port's construction] means new jobs, investments, additional work not only for those who will work at the port, but also for those who will be at the construction site. We have discussed with the colleagues that all interested, qualified companies in the Murmansk Region should take part in this construction. For the Murmansk Region, it will be also a strategic project on the Kola Bay's western shore. Consequently, we need to increase the railway capacity, about which I have asked the Russian president. Those are investments in the economy, jobs, salaries and permanent jobs, including those at a new level," the governor said.

The port construction will be financed by private funds, and in the future the parties plan to use a private public partnership tool, the company's representative added.

In February, Belarusian Ambassador to the Russian Federation Dmitry Krutoy said Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had set the task to have the handling of Belarusian export cargoes through Russian ports reach the level of 20 million tons by the end of 2026.