The merger of Moscow State Academy of Water Transport (MSAWT) into Admiral Makarov State University of Maritime and Inland Shipping, the largest educational institution in Russia’s water transport sector, is nearing completion. The University Rector Sergei Baryshnikov tells IAA PortNews about the process.

Recently, Russia’s shipbuilding industry has been undergoing intense revival. Yevgeny Zagorodny, Vice-President for Civil Shipbuilding, United Shipbuilding Corporation, tells IAA PortNews about new promising designs of vessels, modernization of production facilities, state support measures, impact of sanctions, import substitution and development plans.

Russia’s Federal Marine and River Transport Agency (Rosmorrechflot) has approved the layout of icebreakers at the ports of Russia for the winter navigation of 2016-17. The feature of this season navigation will be in the deployment of many icebreakers in Sabetta and handing over of FESCO icebreakers to FSUE Rosmorport.

Port Posiet is one of the largest coal ports in Russia. Anatoly Balakin, Managing Director of Commercial Port Posiet JSC, tells IAA PortNews about the company’s development plans, its environmental and production activities.

Surveying business in Russian seaports is actually under control of foreign organizations which are only answerable for their actions to their headquarters outside the country, hence less export dues are received by the Russian budget.

A new document regulating the amount of bunker fuel carried by vessels as stores and free of customs duties is effective within the Eurasian Economic Union from December 2016. The document developed by Russia’s Ministry of Transport a year ago was approved almost intact by the Board of Eurasian Economic Commission on 1 November 2016.

IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has approved implementation of a global sulphur cap of 0.5% m/m beyond ECAs in 2020 as well as designation of NOX ECAs from 2021. Experts are concerned about these measures to entail the increase of GHG emissions and adverse affect on navigation safety.

The development of river cruises in Russia is hindered with insufficient number of berths, shallowing of rivers and deterioration of the fleet. Yet, these are not the key challenges. The main objective today is popularization of river routes and making the services comply with the international standards.

Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia, supported by Russian Railways, initiates a new stinging attack on stevedoring business. Head of FAS Igor Artemyev threatened some stevedores with higher berth rent having accused them of being greedy and moving their resources offshore. How fair are those accusations?

Baltic Sea cruises are among the most expensive ones. Saint-Petersburg is set to intensify its struggle for a slice of the ‘cruise cake’. However, a number of infrastructure and legislation challenges should be met to this end.