The issue of building a modern passenger fleet is especially acute for Russia as Crimea joined the Russian Federation and the country is focused on the development of domestic tourism. RF Ministry of Transport sees no possibility of creating the fleet without reducing production costs and developing viable financial structures, expects a lot from composite shipbuilding.

Financing priorities of the Far East infrastructure development is a matter of hot disputes at the top level. Russian Railways claim that reduction of BAM and Transsib modernization programmes is inadmissible while the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East insists on the necessity to reallocate resources in favour of the local projects. Vladimir Putin gives the Government a free hand in handling the issue.

Less than four months is left till new restrictions on sulphur content in marine fuel come into effect. Ship owners, bunker suppliers and shipbuilders are preparing for changes in the market.

Once again, Kaliningrad government announces the obtaining of an investor for construction of a port, the passenger port this time. Yet, the investor has not been named again (MSC Cruises, perhaps). Meanwhile, regional players of the port sector say it is necessary to build a deepwater cargo port as mainland Russia experts consider this idea to be senseless.

Aivars Taurins, Regional Director of Stena Line in Russia, the Baltic States and the CIS, tells IAA PortNews about possible impact of sanctions on transport and logistics market of Russia, as well as about freight market situation and implications of new environmental standards in the Baltic Sea.

Eastern regions of Ukraine earlier accounted for 35% of Ukraine’s exports and 20% of imports. Exports can be compensated by other regions of Ukraine while 20% of imports is a direct blow on general transshipment volumes.

Russia’s sanctions can boost transshipment of containers and decrease transshipment of Ro-Ro cargoes. In case of long-running “war of sanctions” Russia may leave the WTO and loose some raw materials markets including LNG market which is likely to influence implementation of projects on construction of LNG terminals.

The construction of the bridge over the Kerch Strait is to begin in November 2014. Tuzla option has been chosen while an alternative project suggests the construction of a tunnel in Zhukovsky area.

As navigation is in full swing at Nizhny Don, Transport Minister of Rostov Region Vitaly Kushnarev tells IAA PortNews about the development priorities of the region’s transport complex.

Sanctions against Russia were initially imposed on individuals and did not cause any deep concern. However, their toughening and extension to certain sectors of economy can bring some problems, in particular, with implementation of offshore and related transport projects, as well as with shipbuilding.