VLADIVOSTOK, September 4. /TASS/. Poor infrastructures at sea ports, complicated weather conditions and a lack of regular aviation reconnaissance, which vessel owners could use, hinder growth of cargo shipped by the Northern Sea Route, the Far East Shipping Company's (FECCO's) Director of the Fleet Department Vladimir Chabrov told TASS on the eve of the Eastern Economic Forum.
"It (the growth of cargo transportation along the Northern Sea Route - TASS) is hindered first of all by ' infrastructures of the ports along the Northern Sea Route. <…> Is the growth possible at all? Yes, because we understand, the north means hydrocarbons, oil, gas, coal, and - like earlier head of Atomflot (nuclear fleet authority) Vyacheslav Ruksha said - in future the growth to 40 million tonnes by 2024 and to 80 million tonnes by 2029 is possible," he said.
He spoke about the port of Pevek, which due to a shortage of piers and the insufficient depth has problems with receiving vessels and with organization of loading, thus there are long lines of vessels waiting for processing. Another problem, which hinders development of navigation in the Arctic, is often unforeseen weather conditions, the processes of the ice formation, the limited reliability of the meteorology information and the lack of regular aviation reconnaissance results for ordinary owners of vessels.
The structure of cargo brought by the Northern Sea Route remains practically unchanged. "The main clients there are the oil and gas companies, the coal companies, which are bringing in first of all equipment and supplies," he said, adding the Defense Ministry, which is involved there in restoration of the infrastructures, in deliveries of construction and military cargos, as well of required equipment for the work they are doing there.
"Well, and the third factor is the local residents," the expert continued. "This means first of all fuel - both liquid and firm, coal, gas and food products." Speaking about any growth of cargo transportation along the Northern Sea Route in the current season is too early yet, he said, as the navigation still continues there. In 2016, the transported cargo was about 6.9 million tonnes.
Development of the Arctic and of the Northern Sea Route would be topics for discussion at the upcoming Eastern Economic Forum.
The Eastern Economic Forum
The forum is the biggest international communication platform for cooperation between businesses, political and expert communities from Russia, the Pacific Region and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The event organizers report confirmations received from 24 delegations, including representatives of China, Japan, Australian, Canada and the US, as well as European countries like the UK, Germany and others.
In 2016, the Forum gathered 3,500 participants, who presented 111 projects worth total investments of 2.2 trillion rubles ($37 billion). The forum's delegations signed 216 agreements worth 1.85 trillion rubles ($31 billion).
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