MURMANSK, September 6. /TASS/. An increase in cargo traffic of the Murmansk Transport Hub (MTH) to 110 million tons by 2030 and the development of Murmansk with the integration of the Northern Sea Route (NSR) as an international logistics hub is impossible without an upgrade of the existing Oktyabrskaya Railway, and without construction of new railway approaches in the Arctic, the Murmansk Region's Governor Andrey Chibis told TASS, commenting on the speech of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Eastern Economic Forum.
The president told the Eastern Economic Form that the Northern Sea Route's traffic had increased 5 times against Soviet times - to 36 million tons. The president announced further development of logistics facilities related to NSR, including the Murmansk transport hub, the cargo handling upgrade and expanded rail lines running to Arctic ports.
"Murmansk is the base port of the Northern Sea Route, this is quite obvious and it is a generally accepted fact," the governor said. "For the development of cargo traffic, to have ports develop, it is necessary to increase the railway's carrying capacity. Taking into account the new railway that has been built, taking into account the short-range approaches and part of the long-range ones that have been implemented, the rail's carrying capacity to Murmansk will be 45 million tons by the end of 2024. We can see at least 110 million tons by 2030, this is what has been planned, but, sure, the cargo traffic may be even greater."
The upgrade and construction of railway approaches to Arctic ports was on agenda of the Maritime Board meeting chaired by Nikolay Patrushev, as well as during his trip to Murmansk, and it has been discussed in detail with the Ministry of Transport and with the government, he added. "It is fundamentally important for us that the Russian president has said this clearly today. This gives us additional opportunities, together with the government and Russian Railways to work out specific facilities per years, to specify where and what will be built," he said.
The Murmansk Transport Hub project includes creation of transport infrastructures on the Kola Bay's western shore, including coal and oil terminals, and railway infrastructures, including the construction of the Vykhodnoy - Lavna railway line. The project's goal is to create a year-round deep-sea hub, a cargo processing center, integrated into the North-South international transport corridor.
About the forum
The Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) is underway on the campus of the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok on September 3-6, 2024. The main theme of the EEF in 2024 is "Far East 2030. Combining strengths to create new potential."
The EEF is one of the largest international conferences in Russia. It has been held in the Primorsky Region’s Russky Island in Vladivostok since 2015. The Forum is the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who decreed that the event be held annually.
The forum's objectives and goals include promoting the accelerated growth of Russia’s Far East region; assessing its potential for exports; expanding international cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region; showcasing the investment appeal of the region, its steadily progressing territories, and the Vladivostok free port.
The Roscongress Foundation has served as the Forum’s organizer since 2016.
TASS is the general information partner of the EEF.