ST. PETERSBURG, June 20. /TASS/. A "smart port" with maximum digitalization of infrastructures will be created in Arkhangelsk, the region's Governor Alexander Tsybulsky wrote on Telegram after a discussion at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"The ATH (Arkhangelsk Transport Hub) project is forming an entire ecosystem - industrial cooperation, interest from IT companies, and small and medium-sized businesses are integrating into new logistics chains. Our goal is to create a "smart port" - a modern digital infrastructure that is most efficient and open to investors," the governor wrote.

In 2023, the Russian government adopted plans to develop the Arkhangelsk transport hub to make Arkhangelsk a key port of the Northern Sea Route. Over a year and a half, the project's financial and economic model has been developed.

In 2022, due to sanctions, earier export routes were lost, and the trade traffic decreased by a quarter. "We were facing a question - is growth possible at all? It turned out that it is possible, and, moreover, the restructuring of logistics towards the East and the Global South has opened up prospects that are much broader than the previous ones. By the end of 2024, our port's cargo traffic increased by 30%, the export-import shipments tripled, the container shipments increased by 30 times - to us this is an untypical though promising niche," the governor added.

This development proves the port upgrade is a necessity. The ATH development plan's key part is to build a new deep-water port area. The depth is planned at 14.5 meters. The port will operate year-round, and will serve vessels up to 75,000 tons and up to 5,000 containers.

About the forum

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) runs on June 18-21. This year, the event's theme is "Shared Values: The Foundation of Growth in a Multipolar World." Thematic zones such as the ‘Territory of Innovations’ and the ‘Buy Russian!’ national brand space operate at the Forum.

The program includes the SME Forum, the Creative Industries Forum, the Day of the Future International Youth Economic Forum, the Drug Security Forum, and the Roscongress Urban Hub discussion platform, as well as the Petersburg Seasons festival and the SPIEF Sports Games.

The Roscongress Foundation is the event's organizer. TASS is the forum's information partner.