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Russia maintains 80 mln ton annual target for Northern Sea Route

The Northern Sea Route has already become "a very important trade artery," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk said

LIMA, November 14. /TASS/. Russia is keeping its annual target for cargo transportation along the Northern Sea Route at 80 mln metric tons, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk told reporters.

"Yes, nothing has changed," the official said.

Overchuk noted that he will talk about this transport corridor at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Peru. "We are working hard to develop this route, both in terms of building the icebreaker fleet, including the nuclear-powered icebreaker fleet, and in terms of providing for navigation systems, security systems and the port infrastructure. We are investing big in this," the official noted.

The Northern Sea Route has already become "a very important trade artery," Overchuk said. "About 36 mln metric tons of cargo were transported via it last year and this is a significant figure. We plan to ramp it up," he added.

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