Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg handles equipment for Guiana Space Centre
On May 20, 2015 the employees of OJSC “Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg” (“SP SPb”) together with the specialists of “Universal Forwarder” successfully completed the operation on handling of two upper-stage rockets “Frigate” and two carrier rockets “Soyuz-ST” for Guiana Space Centre (Kourou Space Centre, French Guiana). According to the port’s press center, equipment was loaded aboard the vessel “MN Colibri”.
Equipment and components were delivered to the port in specialized containers by trucks and railway transport. Handling operations were performed within two days: one part of shipment lot was reloaded by gantry cranes, second part – as ro-ro cargo — via ramp, mounted at the berth 37 of the ro-ro terminal.
Since 2008 this is the seventh shipment lot of equipment for Guiana Space Centre that was reloaded via terminals of “SP SPb”. Delivery of equipment is carried out under intergovernmental agreement between Russia and France on long-term cooperation in the sphere of development, creation and use of rocket-carriers.
Handling of project and out-of-gauge cargoes is one of priority spheres for “SP SPb”. The company continuously expands the range of project and out-of-gauge cargoes and handles equipment for leading industrial, power and transportation companies participating in major International projects. Recently via its terminals “SP SPb” handled heavy-lift steam plants and reactors for Tianwan Nuclear Power Station in China, tug-boats for Pacific fleet, components of Siemens power plant for “Yuzhnouralsk GRES-2” in Chelyabinsk region, one of the most powerful locomotives in the world KZ8A for Kazakhstan.
OJSC “Sea Port of Saint-Petersburg” (included in UCL Port – stevedoring division of the International transportation group UCL Holding) – is the largest operator, rendering services on handling of all types of dry cargoes in the Greater Port of Saint-Petersburg. It operates by modern specialized terminals for handling of ro-ro cargoes, cars and metals. In 2014 the turnover of the company amounted to 8.1 mln tons.
LLC “Universal Forwarder” (part of UCL Holding) arranges handling operations and forwarding of cargoes in sea and river ports of RF, CIS and Europe, performs multimodal and mixed transportation of cargoes, charters sea and river vessels, serves as the vessel agent in the Azov-Black Sea Basin.
Upper-stage rocket “Frigate” (RB “Frigate”) was developed in scientific development and production center named after S.А. Lavochkin and aimed to be used as rocket-carriers of medium and heavy class for launching of space vehicles to the desired orbits.
Carrier rocket “Soyuz-ST” (RN “Soyuz-ST”) was developed by “RKTS “Progress” for launching operations from Guiana Space Centre.
