Ascent of the Caspian Sea. The largest port in the Caspian Sea has been commissioned in Turkmenistan
The Caspian Sea is the largest lake on Earth. It washes the shores of five states. These are Russia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Iran. It is called a lake because the body of water is not connected to the world's oceans. But in terms of the composition of the water, history of origin and size, the Caspian Sea is a sea.
Baku
Turkmenbashi
Also on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea is the city of Turkmenistan - Turkmenbashi. This Caspian Sea port is a major center of the republic's oil refining industry. The factories produce polypropylene, diesel and universal oils. Turkmenbashi is mainly a ferry terminal. There is a constant ferry service to the city of Baku. In addition, there are railway junctions and an airport.
On the territory of the international seaport, shipbuilding and repair plants have been established in order to expand opportunities in the oil industries. Recently, a passenger station began operating in this city. Speaking about the sea ports of the Caspian Sea, we can clarify that this is one of the main ones.
Maritime transport is considered " circulatory system» global trade and the cheapest type of cargo delivery.
Shipping worldwide accounts for about 80% of global trade volume and 70% in value terms.
The Caspian countries, which received the opportunity for independent economic activity in coastal waters, in fact, only with the advent of the 21st century did they “take up” the development of their ports in this body of water, where navigation is carried out all year round.
Azerbaijan is a leader in the Caspian Sea
The oldest and largest port on the Caspian Sea is based in Baku Bay.
This port is mentioned in historical documents of the 16th century.
In March 2015, by decree of President Ilham Aliyev, the port of Baku was reorganized into a closed joint-stock company (CJSC).
In 2017, it will handle more than 5 million tons of cargo.
It should be noted that in order to effectively use the transit capabilities of Azerbaijan, the newest and largest in the Caspian Baku International Sea Trade Port (BIMTP) and Free Trade Zone.
After completion of the first large-scale construction phase, planned for the first half of 2018, the cargo handling capacity of the port of Baku in Alyat will be 15 million tons per year plus 100,000 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit, TEU). and after the completion of the second and third phases of construction, it will grow to 25 million tons plus 1 million TEU, making it the leader in cargo transportation in the Caspian Sea.
The Baku port includes the main cargo terminal, a container terminal, the Dubendy oil terminal (throughput capacity up to 12 million tons), a ferry terminal, and a passenger terminal.
The ferry terminal serves the directions Baku-Turkmenbashi-Baku, Baku-Aktau-Baku, Baku - Iranian ports - Baku.
The passenger terminal consists of 3 berths with a total length of 340 meters and is designed to receive passenger ships from the Caspian countries.
Baku International Sea Trade Port is the most important route for cargo transportation from China to Europe, as well as the most attractive route for transportation from Europe to Central Asia.
Port is integral part Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), implemented as part of the new “Great Silk Road” project.
Its role in cargo transshipment increased with the launch of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway on October 30.
These prospects were the focus of attention at a meeting of the heads of transport departments of the Caspian region and a number of Black Sea countries on November 15 in Baku.
As a result of these negotiations, an important document was signed, which approved a reduction in tariffs for transportation on the TMTM and the BTK railway in 2018.
The transportation plan for 2018 for TMTM was approved at a level of more than 3.5 million tons, while about 15 thousand containers are planned to be transported from Turkey in the direction of Kazakhstan, Central Asia and China through the Caspian Sea and using the railway infrastructure.
In Baku on November 15, agreements were reached that all railway administrations, ports of the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea basin would establish preferential attractive tariffs.
This will allow about 7-8 million tons of cargo to be transported through the TMTM by 2020, with a further increase.
Convenient logistics of the BSMTP will improve the efficiency of the international transport corridors “North-South” and “West-East”.
The port infrastructure of Baku also includes the Sangachal terminal with a capacity of over 34 million tons of oil per year, which serves key oil and gas projects in Azerbaijan.
Thus, in terms of oil transshipments, Azerbaijan is the undisputed leader in the Caspian Sea.
It should be noted that through the port terminals of Baku, maritime trade links are maintained with the major ports of the Caspian Sea, and through the Volga-Don and Volga-Baltic canals with the ports of the Black, Mediterranean, Baltic, North Seas and the Atlantic Ocean.
So how are things going with the port infrastructure of Azerbaijan’s neighbors in the Caspian Sea?
Russian Federation
The other day, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree approving the strategy for the development of Russian seaports in the Caspian Basin, as well as railway and road approaches to them until 2030.
The share of transshipment of goods passing through the Russian Federation in its Caspian ports is only 0.8%.
IN explanatory note By order of the head of the Russian government, it is noted that the main goals of this strategy are to strengthen Russia’s economic and geopolitical presence in the Caspian Sea, expand economic and cultural ties with the countries of the basin, as well as create conditions for the development of this region of the Russian Federation by increasing international trade flows.
“The implementation of the strategy and the fulfillment of its indicators will make it possible by 2030 to ensure the volume of grain exports through the ports of the Caspian Basin up to 7 million tons, the volume of cargo traffic for other dry cargo - up to 7 million tons; attract Russian tourist flow to the Caspian region - up to 30 thousand people per year; create more than 2 thousand new jobs,” the document notes.
The plan will be implemented gradually, in three stages: the preparatory stage will last until 2020, the next, main one, until 2025 and, finally, the third should end by 2030, the statement said.
This order by Medvedev followed the instructions of Russian President Vladimir Putin following a meeting with members of the government on October 12, 2016.
Thus, it took more than a year to prepare.
According to the Association of Sea Carriers of the Russian Federation, in the Russian ports of the Caspian Basin over the three quarters of 2017, 3.1 million tons of cargo were transshipped (a decrease of 35.3%), of which dry cargo - 2.2 million tons (a decrease of 9.8% ), liquid - 0.9 million tons (a drop of 61.4%).
The volume of cargo transshipment of the ports: Makhachkala - 1.1 million tons (a drop of 58.3%), Astrakhan -1.8 million tons (a decrease of 9.1%) and Olya - 195 thousand tons (an increase of 25%) .
Russian experts explain such sad dynamics by the departure of liquid cargo from Russian ports on the Caspian Sea to the ports of Azerbaijan.
The port of Astrakhan can handle only 2.45 million tons of liquid cargo and store 105 thousand tons of petroleum products.
In general, its annual throughput capacity is 9.935 million tons of cargo, of which 7.4 are dry cargo.
The Olya port in the Astrakhan region has a capacity of 1.58 million tons of cargo and is designed only for dry cargo.
The throughput capacity of the port of Dagestan is 7.26 million tons (including 5.5 million tons of liquid cargo).
Turkmenistan
This week, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov inspected the progress of construction of a new International Seaport in the city of Turkmenbashi.
The total area of this multifunctional port with a throughput capacity of 17-18 million tons of cargo per year - more than 1 million 400 thousand square meters, the length of the berth line is 3 thousand 800 meters.
The container terminal with an average annual capacity of 400 thousand TEU occupies an area of 249 thousand square meters.
This project was developed taking into account the protection requirements environment, in accordance with the international standard “Green Port”. Thus, in order to preserve the ecology of the Caspian Sea, bio-purification equipment will be installed in each terminal.
The new port is intended to give an additional powerful impetus to the economic development of Turkmenistan.
Iran
In Iran, on the Caspian Sea there is the port city of Chalus, but it is actually a resort area.
In reality, cargo transshipment in the Iranian Caspian waters is carried out by the port of Bender-Anzali, now called the “free economic zone (FEZ) Anzali”.
It should be noted that on March 30, 2017, in the presence of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the opening ceremony of a new port complex took place on the territory of this SEZ.
This facility is equipped with 22 berths. In the final stages of putting this new port into operation, its throughput capacity will be 15 million tons of cargo per year.
Kazakhstan
The history of the port of Aktau begins in 1963, when the need arose to transport products from the uranium industry and oil fields of Mangyshlak.
In 1969-1986, four oil berths and a ferry complex were created. Most of transportation through the port of Aktau accounted for oil - up to 7 million tons per year in the early 80s, while transportation of dry cargo did not exceed 300 thousand tons per year.
Currently, the capacity of transshipment of oil cargo is 12 million tons per year, dry cargo - 2.5 million tons.
Last year, a more modern port in terms of its characteristics, Kuryk (100 km from Aktau), was put into operation in Kazakhstan.
At the end of 2017, this port expects to handle 1.2 million tons of cargo, in 2018 - up to 3 million tons.
CASPIAN - REGION OF FRIENDSHIP
It is noteworthy that the Caspian countries are planning to intensify passenger transportation and organize tourist cruises along the reservoir with calls at all specified ports.
Every year, ships from Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan sail along Russian rivers, for example, from Astrakhan to Rostov-on-Don and St. Petersburg. The process of approving all permitting documents for the passage of ships of these states through the internal waters of the Russian Federation is regulated, understandable and transparent.
As for the North-South and East-West transport projects, the Caspian countries demonstrate unanimity in their implementation.
According to the Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation (head Federal agency sea and river transport) Viktor Olersky, “the formation of the North-South transport corridor back in 2000 was initiated by the Russian Ministry of Transport to implement a strategic partnership with the countries of the Caspian region, the Persian Gulf and South Asia.”
In the fall of 2016, a test batch of containers passed along the entire route of the North-South corridor - from India to Russia through Iran and Azerbaijan.
However, in order for this route to really work, a number of works need to be carried out in Iran.
As the head of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC Javid Gurbanov said on November 15, “the Azerbaijani side has already allocated a loan to Iran in the amount of $500 million for the construction of the 164-kilometer Rasht-Astara railway as part of the North-South project and work on this section will begin in first half of next year."
“The construction of the Astara-Rasht branch is the second phase of the North-South project. As part of the first phase, at the end of December the Astara-Astara railway will be completely ready, including a 1.4-kilometer line and a terminal for transshipment of dry cargo, and a passenger station on the Iranian side,” added D. Gurbanov.
At the first stage, the North-South corridor can transport 6 million tons of cargo per year, and in the future - 15-20 million tons of cargo.
In conversation with website National Secretary of the Transport Cooperation Program (TRACECA) for Azerbaijan, expert Akif Mustafayev noted that in the development of transport corridors, Azerbaijan is not a competitor to the Russian Federation, Iran or other Caspian states, but, on the contrary, is ready to cooperate with them.
“So, the recently launched BTK is open for the transportation of goods from the Caspian countries and is already promising for the same Russian Federation, the development of its ports will require time and significant investments,” believes A. Mustafayev.
He called on the coastal countries to understand that the Caspian Sea is becoming a strategic trade zone, the shortest transit bridge from Asia to Europe and back.
“The economic interests of the Caspian countries should make it a sea of friendship, not discord. There is no need to compete in the use of this reservoir, but it is necessary to quickly resolve technical, tariff, and border issues, which will help all countries receive economic benefits,” A. Mustafayev emphasized.
1 news. az
Text: Lada Evgrashina
Today, with the participation of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, a new international seaport was solemnly put into operation on the Turkmen shore of the Caspian Sea, reports the State News Agency of Turkmenistan.
Without exaggeration, a large-scale infrastructure project is of strategic importance for all countries of the Central Asian region and the Caspian basin, since its implementation contributes to their active integration into the international system of economic relations and increasing the role of Turkmenistan as an important center of transit communications.
The new sea gates of Turkmenistan are designed not only to satisfy the growing needs of our country for sea communications, but also to open up new opportunities for intensifying cargo transportation throughout the Eurasian space.
“The new seaport is intended to become the most important link in the formation modern system sea transportation, creating the maximum favorable conditions for access to the Black Sea region, to the countries of Europe, the Middle East, South Asia and the Asia-Pacific region,” President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov said, speaking at the high-level international transport conference that opened today in Avaza.
The head of Turkmenistan also said that the new coastal infrastructure in the Caspian Sea “will significantly reduce distances and travel times for large-scale cargo flows, bringing economic and trade cooperation between the countries of Asia and Europe to a qualitatively new level.”
At a ceremony in the city of Turkmenbashi, the new seaport of Turkmenistan was awarded a certificate from the Guinness Book of Records as “the largest port below sea level.”
The project, worth US$1.5 billion, was implemented over five years by the Turkish company Gap Inshat.
The new International Seaport combines ferry, passenger and cargo terminals. In addition, there are shipbuilding and ship repair plants there. The total length of the berths, which can simultaneously serve 17 ships, is more than 1,800 meters.
The total throughput capacity of the new port is 17 million tons of cargo, excluding petroleum products.
… Even on the way to the new port, festive celebrations unfolded in the national spirit: yurts were erected, folk ensembles performed, samples of folk arts and crafts, original rites and rituals were demonstrated. Craftsmen worked in makeshift workshops, and skilled chefs and cooks prepared treats near smoking boilers and stoves.
An atmosphere of high emotional uplift reigned at the venue of the celebration, where Head of State Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov arrived.
Near the symbolic arch, the President cuts the festive ribbon, opening the International Seaport.
President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov walked along the pier, examining buildings and structures dressed in white marble, engineering and technical structures of the port, and everywhere the Turkmen leader was greeted with songs and dances, colorful performances.
Against the backdrop of mountains on one side, the port looks like an elegant and respectable town, sparkling with tinted glass and golden trim, with original architecture. From the sea side, an industrial landscape opens up with powerful cantilever structures of port cranes against the blue sky.
The total area of the port is more than 1 million 358.5 thousand square meters. To ensure that ships could approach the pier, a colossal amount of work was carried out to excavate about 10 million cubic meters of soil and deepen the seabed.
The total length of the pier, 20 meters wide, is 3 thousand 600 meters, which allows several cargo and passenger ships to simultaneously arrive, depart and be serviced at the port.
A large exhibition was set up on one of the platforms on the pier, on both sides of the improvised amphitheater, where the combined ensemble of dutarists performed. One part of it is dedicated to the folk applied arts of the Turkmens, the traditions of national culture and life, and the other to the modern industry of the country, including the export component. Here one could see a wide range of products from the textile industry, products of the oil and gas, chemical complexes, and processing industries. For example, a variety of products made from domestic polypropylene, which today is used in various areas Turkmen industry: from household equipment to carpet weaving.
Equipped with the latest technology, the seaport of Turkmenbashi creates the most favorable conditions for European countries to access the commodity and raw materials markets of the Near and Middle East and the states of the Indian Ocean, allowing to significantly reduce the distance and travel time of large-scale cargo flows.
After viewing the exhibition, which was accompanied by performances by art masters, the head of state proceeded to the building for a ceremony, where a multimedia show was presented to the attention of the President of Turkmenistan and all participants. The literary plot of the film, shown on a panoramic screen using special effects and laser technology, was based on the book of the head of state “Turkmenistan - the heart of the Great Silk Road”.
Spectators saw the picturesque landscapes of Turkmen nature, its varied landscapes along which the historical route once ran - endless expanses of desert, mountains, fertile valleys and the sea coast.
The film also briefly describes the main directions of development transport system our country, increasing its transit potential and forming a network of international transport corridors. A video was shown about the features of the seaport of the city of Turkmenbashi, the work of all terminals of the port, which is intended to become a determining factor for the development of not only the country’s transport system, but also the entire national economy, was clearly presented.
As part of the International Seaport in Turkmenbashi, ferry, passenger and container terminals, as well as a shipbuilding and ship repair plant were built. In addition to the construction of berth hydraulic structures, numerous coastal infrastructure facilities were built here, including transport support: roads with elevated interchanges with a total length of more than 3.9 thousand meters and railway tracks - about 30 thousand meters.
As for the technical “stuffing” of the new seaport, it is equipped with the most modern software and hardware systems necessary to ensure the safety and efficiency of navigation and cargo transportation, as well as environmental protection, which the head of state Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov attaches special meaning. Control over the movement of vessels in the port waters, loading and unloading operations in all areas is controlled using automated systems and electronic technologies in real time.
At the end of the film, the President went to the Balkan shipbuilding and ship repair plant. This fundamentally new production in the national economic complex of the country lays the foundation for the emergence of domestic shipbuilding. In addition to ship assembly, a full cycle of repair work on tankers, dry cargo ships, tugs, etc. will be carried out here.
The plant, whose capacity allows it to process 10 thousand tons of steel per year, is designed to build 4-6 ships during this time, using modern technologies and automated systems that meet international standards. In addition, this production facility is capable of performing maintenance and repair work on 20-30 ships, including processing 2 thousand tons of steel per year.
The plant has installed a ship moving system with a lifting capacity of 10 thousand tons, there is also a port wheeled crane with a lifting capacity of 80 tons, and rail cranes with a lifting capacity of 40, 60 and 80 tons. Shipbuilding is a highly technical and complex process. It affects a combination of many skilled trades and workers. In general, 1,160 jobs were created at the Balkan plant, which occupies an area of 166 thousand square meters.
The head of state is asked to start the construction of a new ship.
The President presses a special button, at this moment the cutting process starts metal sheet. And on monitors broadcasting the event in real time, you can see how terminals for containers, bulk cargo and a general loading terminal are opened one by one.
Upon completion of the operation of cutting the steel sheet and giving it a shape according to the design configuration, the operator asks the head of state to leave a memorable signature on the prepared part of the future vessel.
The President of Turkmenistan puts his signature on an electronic screen, and special laser equipment applies an image of a stroke to a prepared sheet of metal, which is shown on the screens.
From here the head of state headed to the passenger terminal.
Along the way, the head of state inspected the container terminal, bulk cargo and general loading terminals. Specialists accompanying the head of state spoke about the capabilities of the International Seaport in receiving, processing, storing and shipping various cargoes.
The container terminal with an average annual capacity of 400 thousand TEU occupies an area of 249 thousand square meters. This strategic facility will bring Turkmenistan to a leading position in the export-import logistics system of the region. The multimodal logistics park will provide a range of services for the storage and combined processing of container cargo delivered by air, road and rail, ensuring their transshipment at water transport and back.
The length of the container terminal berth is 480 meters, which allows loading and unloading operations to be carried out simultaneously on several vessels with a total carrying capacity of 5 thousand tons.
The port has the latest equipment and special handling equipment for cargo handling. Thus, the container terminal operates ship-to-shore (STS) transshippers with a capacity of 25 TEU per hour. That is, each such crane can unload one ship with 300 containers in 12 hours.
A main distribution center (CFS - Container Freight Station) is being built in the terminal, whose functions include grouping cargo by destination, with a throughput of 50 TEU per day.
The container terminal, which is equipped with a satellite monitoring system with all current information displayed on operator monitors, is designed in accordance with the CTQI (Container Terminal Quality Indicator) standard. Over the past few years, there has been a rapid increase in container turnover all over the world, which naturally has affected the increase in the number of container terminals. The introduction of CTQI made it possible to create a unified quality control system for this type of service. 
The bulk cargo terminal is designed for transshipment of various raw materials, petrochemical products, clinker, iron ore, bauxite, aluminum, coal, feed, fertilizers, as well as grain, granulated sugar, salt, etc., for the storage of which warehouses and bunkers are built.
One of the largest facilities is the general cargo terminal. Its capacity averages 4 million tons of cargo per year. It is designed to receive and send various building materials, iron, steel, wood, machinery, equipment, etc. At the quay wall of this terminal, several vessels with a carrying capacity of 5 thousand tons can be processed simultaneously. Powerful rail and mobile port cranes are used for loading and unloading.
As for the specialized terminal for the storage and shipment of polypropylene, this product occupies one of the leading places in the list of petroleum products produced by the Turkmenbashi complex of oil refineries. It is in extremely high demand on world markets, as evidenced, in particular, by numerous contracts concluded at the State Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange of Turkmenistan. The geography of consumers of Turkmen polypropylene is very extensive: Japan, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and other countries. Substantial part export goods"leaves" by sea.
Issues of the long-term development of the infrastructure of the main sea gates of the country and the domestic fleet are clearly coordinated and interconnected with the plans of the oil and gas, industrial complexes, railway transport and other sectors of the economy, the khyakimlik of the seaside city, in a word - all entities operating in the Caspian region.
The new port will give an additional powerful impetus to the economic progress of Turkmenistan, the development of industrial and transport infrastructure, the creation of new jobs, and will also help attract large investments. Great prospects are also opening up in terms of developing the Avaza National Tourist Zone and increasing the flow of people coming to our country from other countries for a sea holiday.
It is noteworthy that in order to preserve the ecology of the Caspian Sea, bio-purification equipment is installed in each terminal. In general, the entire project is developed in accordance with the international Green Port standard. It is noteworthy that the soil excavated during the construction of a new sea harbor was used to create an artificial island in the waters of the sea bay near the city of Turkmenbashi. This island with an area of 170 hectares has become a habitat, nesting and wintering place for flamingos, swans, geese, ducks, herons, pelicans and other bird species.
In parallel with the construction of the port, big job for the training of its personnel and training of operators, specialized specialists both in Turkmenistan and abroad.
The President goes to the passenger terminal building, where on this day an exhibition dedicated to the transport and communications sector took place. The exhibition in the format of video stands represents various international organizations, as well as specialized structures of the Central Asian and Caspian states.
The general idea of these video presentations is that the diversification of transport flows, the inclusion of a large number of states and large regions in the geography of routes will really contribute to the further development of interstate relations, mutual understanding and rapprochement of countries and peoples.
It is obvious that with the commissioning of the seaport in Turkmenbashi, the use of the capabilities of large international and regional organizations in the development of multi-vector and multilateral cooperation will significantly expand.
President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov carefully examined the arrangement of the passenger terminal, the conditions created for travelers and the work of staff.
The passenger terminal building has a capacity of 600 seats. A system of migration and passport control and other necessary procedures has been created here at the modern level. There will also be a port hotel, shopping and entertainment centers.
Overall, the car and passenger ferry terminal occupies total area 230 thousand square meters, two ships can moor at its pier at the same time. It will be able to serve 300 thousand passengers and 75 thousand trailers per year.
Of course, the new port will contribute to the growth of tourist flows to the Turkmen resort of Avaza, primarily from neighboring Caspian states. Here, vacationers will be greeted by fashionable hotels and cozy cottage complexes with high-quality service, as well as state-of-the-art sports facilities and leisure infrastructure development.
Before leaving the passenger terminal building, the head of state left a memorable entry in the Book of Honorable Guests.
Expressing confidence that the new port will give an additional powerful impetus to the economic progress of Turkmenistan, the development of the industrial and transport infrastructure of the region, the creation of new jobs, and will also help attract large investments, the head of state wished everyone great success in their work and left the scene.
Having completed his working trip to the Balkan velayat, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov departed from the Turkmenbashi International Airport for Ashgabat.
The Caspian Sea is gradually turning into a territory for transit transportation of hydrocarbons. Although, in terms of traffic volumes, it is, of course, still far from the fraternal Black (they were once in distant times a single big ocean), but the process, as they say, has begun. And there are several objective reasons for this. Firstly, coastal states are still locked within an inland body of water, legally: either lakes or seas, and do not have access to world hydrocarbon markets. Which, however, is closely linked to the second reason - the unresolved legal status of the sea-lake.
Then, a closed reservoir is the most environmentally vulnerable, so pipelines are contraindicated for it. What remains is the tanker fleet, but it is not a panacea either, since the Caspian remains a shallow sea, and there is not much room for deadweight there, and we must not forget about the environment. In addition, special port facilities are needed for tanker transportation, and care should be taken about existing or projected pipelines leading to European and Asian ones. And finally, we need optimal volumes of transportation of raw materials that can recoup the costs of production and transportation.
What directions can you choose for the tanker's course? They can be found in the documents on the country’s transport strategy, the Maritime Transport Development Program for 2006-2012, developed by the Republic of Kazakhstan, as the state that is the most open in its geopolitical plans for the diversification of hydrocarbon supplies to foreign markets, when compared with the same Turkmenistan. The documents provide for two types of export deliveries via water routes - tankers and ferry transportation of railway tanks. It should be recalled that pipelines are currently being considered only from the standpoint of continuing the transit of raw materials, but not to the Caspian Sea.
Experts name several directions for transporting hydrocarbons across the Caspian Sea. The first is Iranian. It includes a direct connection with the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI), where they are planning to build a main oil pipeline from the Caspian port of Neka to the port of Jask on the coast of the Gulf of Oman. They plan to pump a million barrels per day. In addition, the project provides for the construction of an oil refinery and two plants for the production of bitumen and industrial oils in the Chabahar free economic zone. They are currently looking for investors for the project.
There is already a ferry connection between Aktau and Baku and Nowshahr with Iran. From the point of view of the transit of oil and petroleum products through Iran, it should be taken into account that only road (cheap fuel) and pipeline transport are sufficiently developed in the country, almost none railways and the slow formation of a tanker fleet in the Caspian Sea is underway. There is a UN embargo, which also applies to barter carried out by the CIS countries to Iran, the scheme is simple: Kazakhstan or Turkmenistan, raw materials sold to Armenia or Turkey are transported to the Caspian port of Iran, and the latter, in turn, forwards the nearest Iranian oil to the customer.
The second direction is Russia. Direct water communication with the port of Makhachkala. Further, the infrastructure of Russian Railways, pipelines to the Black Sea or along the Volga-Don canal to the Azov basin. There is also a northern option along the Volga-Baltic Canal with access to the Baltic Sea. In addition, the Russian river route is characterized by limited navigation in the autumn winter period. Third, the Black Sea-Mediterranean direction involves mixed transit Aktau - sea - Baku - pipeline - Batumi - sea - Europe. In addition, supplies can be diversified in Baku, for example, by sending oil to Novorossiysk or driving it into the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main oil pipeline. Turkmenistan has the same opportunities, but from the port of Turkmenbashi.
Let us note that a tanker with a deadweight of 12-14 thousand tons, plying along the Caspian Sea (between Aktau and Baku), is capable of transporting 1 million tons of oil per year. Today, mainly tankers with a deadweight of 3-5 thousand tons sail on the sea. The Caspian ports are shallow, so Aktau (Kazakhstan), Neka (Iran), Turkmenbashi (Turkmenistan) have a depth of less than 10 m, Baku (Azerbaijan) – 12 m. At the same time, only five-thousander tankers are capable of entering the above-mentioned ports, as well as passing through the Volga-Don and Volga-Baltic canals. Travel time from Kazakh Aktau to Iranian Nek is 7 days, from Turkmenbashi to Nek - 5 days. Moreover, the Caspian Sea is not always calm.
Kazakhstan Given the diversification of supplies, Kazakhstan had to transform from a steppe power into a maritime one and begin to form a naval and merchant fleet. This is how it was created Joint-Stock Company National Maritime Shipping Company Kazmortransflot (JSC NMSK Kazmortransflot) December 4, 1998. It includes: Kazmortransflot Ltd, Mangistau Region Shipyard LLP, Kazmortransflot UK Ltd, Altai Shipping Ltd and Alatau Shipping Ltd. The number of subsidiaries is affected by the geographical location of the vessels, for example, the port of Batumi on the Black Sea, or the port of Aktau on the Caspian Sea, etc., their purpose - a tanker, or a Kazmunaigas platform barge, or a gas carrier, or a dry cargo ship, etc. ., deadweight - optimal for shallow water off the coast of the Caspian Sea is 13 thousand tons. In addition, environmentalists also point to this carrying capacity as the safest. In total this year there are total will reach 20 tankers and 5 bulk carriers, as well as 150 maritime support vessels.
The improvement of the tanker fleet will go towards increasing the tonnage of vessels, the most optimal is 60 thousand tons. From an environmental point of view, tankers will be equipped with a double hull, in addition, several chambers will be installed on them for transporting various hydrocarbon cargoes. Such a ship is difficult to deliver to the Caspian Sea, so we can talk about building a shipyard in coastal zone. Another direction should be the development of port infrastructure and the creation of a deep-water port, according to the country's leadership, it will be the port of Kuryk, located in the East of the Caspian Sea in the Mangystau region, with an oil terminal (20 million tons per year), a shipyard, an engineering technology park, a base for supporting marine operations and rescue center. The port will be provided with appropriate engineering and road infrastructure.
Let us add that the second main port of the country, Aktau, is located in the Eastern part of the Caspian Sea and is intended for international transport of various dry cargo, crude oil and petroleum products. In 1999, it was reconstructed and today it is capable of carrying out loading and transhipment operations in the amount of 1.5 million tons per year, and transshipping oil in the amount of 8 million tons per year.
There is also a private tanker transportation company, Mobilex Energy Ltd. It controls one of the terminals in the port of Aktau and owns several tankers.
Turkmenistan The Republic of Turkmenistan does not lag behind other countries in the region in creating a tanker fleet. In addition to the old ships and a tanker (5 thousand tons) made in Turkey, 2 river-sea tankers were recently built in Russia to transport 6 types of oil products with a deadweight of 7 thousand tons. Today, the construction of several more tankers continues.
The port of Turkmenbashi was built in late XIX century. Since then it has been constantly evolving. Today it has a ferry pier, from where liquefied gases are exported by ferries to Makhachkala (Russian Federation). There is also a pier for transshipment of dry cargo and an oil pier for transshipment of about 12 million tons per year. In addition, there are several port oil loading points in the country, mainly near active hydrocarbon fields.
Russia Russian private companies are also actively working in the Caspian Sea. Among them: Logical Investment Group “Safinat”, Shipping Company Palmali Shipping, “Volgotanker”, and in the future “Moscow River Shipping Company” (MRS).
The Safinat Group has 6 tankers and one gas carrier. It also owns a processing terminal liquefied gas in the port of Temryuk. The shipping company Palmali Shipping has 25 tankers of various carrying capacities. They are widely used by LUKOIL for other transportation. "Volgotanker", today, is largest owner river-sea tankers with a displacement of 5 thousand tons. Its fleet includes more than 300 oil tankers. It transports oil and petroleum products from the ports of Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to Makhachkala (Russian Federation). Active construction of tankers is carried out by the Moscow River Shipping Company (MRS), which has placed an order with one of the shipbuilding enterprises of the Russian Federation.
The main Russian ports on the Caspian Sea are Astrakhan, Makhachkala and Olya. The main port for oil transshipment is Makhachkala. It has its own oil harbor, where tankers with a deadweight of 10 thousand tons and a draft of up to 10 m can enter. On its territory there is an oil depot connected to the Novorossiysk main oil pipeline. Industrial transportation of oil to the Iranian port of Neka is planned through the ice-free port of Makhachkala. The capacity of two oil piers is 7 million tons of oil per year. Ferry service between Makhachkala and Turkmenbashi is widely developed for transportation liquefied gases in railway tanks, organized in 2006.
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan has the largest seaport in the Caspian Sea and the largest tanker fleet; in addition, it has 7 ferries on its balance sheet, capable of carrying 28 tanks. He inherited some of the ships from the Soviet Union. Until recently, the Azerbaijani state Caspian Shipping Company "Caspar" remained a virtual monopolist in the transportation of oil cargo on the Caspian Sea. Therefore, the country's leadership was constantly updating the fleet. Kaspar has fifty tankers with deadweight ranging from 6 to 13 thousand tons.
Recently, the country's leadership announced plans to build a shipyard to produce Caspian Max tankers with a carrying capacity of 60-70 thousand tons for delivering oil from Tengiz and Kashagan (Kazakhstan) with subsequent loading into the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. They will run between Aktau (Kuryk) - Baku, Aktau (Kuryk) - Turkmenbashi - Makhachkala. In addition, the country plans to develop a flotilla of tankers on the Black Sea for its own needs. This does not take into account the fierce competition in shipbuilding, for example, the presence of shipyards in the Russian Federation. Previously, Azerbaijan built its new tankers at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in Nizhny Novgorod. And also the competition of maritime transport. In addition to 4 state flotillas, ships of Russian private carriers sail in the Caspian Sea. Meanwhile, some of the Kaspar tankers are laid up without loading.
As for the port infrastructure of the port of Baku, it includes: the Dubendy terminal with a design capacity of 12 million tons, the Sangachal terminal - 34 million tons (serves the BTC pipeline) - all of them are still partially loaded.
Iran Iran's main hydrocarbon deposits are located either on the border with Iraq or in the Persian Gulf, so the country tries to use oil supplies from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to supply the northern provinces. Returning the volumes received in the Persian Gulf, previously mentioned the Kazakh fleet outside the Caspian Sea. Every day, 1 million barrels of oil are pumped from south to north.
In addition, the country decided to enter into competition for oil transportation in the Caspian Sea in 2003, when the first tanker was built and launched. The Caspian Sea should not be confused with the tanker flotilla in the Red Sea. There are more than fifty of them there, including gas carriers. To solve the problem of shallow water, a remote deep-water terminal several kilometers long was built in the port of Neka with an oil pipeline to the shore.
Finally If we try to calculate the current results for total hydrocarbon production and make a forecast for the future, we can conclude that there is no need yet to increase tanker transportation and, accordingly, the tanker fleet. Everything found the consumer without increasing traffic. Thus, last year Azerbaijan produced 46 million tons of oil and 16.5 billion cubic meters. m of natural gas. The actual decline in production was 10% and 6%, respectively, compared to last year. In the future - only geological exploration at the second stage of Shah Deniz, the Absheron, Umid, Shafag and Asiman fields.
In Kazakhstan, production amounted to 80 million tons of oil and 39 billion cubic meters. m of gas. Compared to last year it has grown. Good news came from the Kashagan field (1.5 billion tons of oil and 1 billion cubic meters of gas). There are 21 production wells ready for operation there. This means that the fountain may fill up at the end of this year. Turkmenistan produced only about 50 billion cubic meters last year. m of gas per year. The republic is still growing only through its own forecasts. Today, 12 billion tons of oil and 6.5 trillion cubic meters of gas are predicted. Although the Malaysian company Petronas commissioned a gas processing plant and a terminal for receiving raw materials, designed to receive and process 5 billion cubic meters. m of natural gas with an output of 10 billion cubic meters. m.
The waiting process can last several years. Meanwhile, Iran announced the opening gas field in the southern Caspian Sea, whose reserves are estimated at 1.5 trillion cubic meters. m. Another territorial dispute and conflict of interest.
The Astrakhan region is located at the crossroads of trade routes. This led to the creation of the seaport of Astrakhan here, at the mouth of the Volga River, several hundred years ago. Nowadays, it is still a key port for Russia on the Caspian Sea, and it is natural that today it houses a new basin structure of port authorities - the Federal State Budgetary Institution “Administration of Seaports of the Caspian Sea”.
In Astrakhan, the Caspian sea and Volga river routes intersect with railways and highways, transshipment of Russian foreign trade and transit cargo delivered to the port by rail, road, sea and river transport takes place. The head of the Federal State Budgetary Institution "AMP of the Caspian Sea" Magomed Abdulatipov told the correspondent of the magazine "Sea Ports" Natalya Mironova about the history and significance of the port, the state of affairs and features of navigation, about ensuring the safety of navigation in the port and on the approaches to it.
“MP”: Magomed Alievich, a lot of historical works and studies have been written about the enormous importance of Astrakhan as a seaport, including by historians of the region. If we compare past centuries and the present, in your opinion, has the port of Astrakhan lost its key role in the Caspian Sea for the Russian economy?
Astrakhan has become an important trade and border point, a major trade center since the annexation of the Astrakhan Khanate to To the Russian state in 1556.
The history of Astrakhan as a port dates back to the times of Peter the Great. In the first quarter of the 18th century, Peter I, who sought to strengthen economic ties with the East, intended to change traditional trade routes by directing eastern trade along the Caspian-Volga route. For this purpose, he founded a port in Astrakhan, founded the Admiralty, and began the construction of a merchant marine fleet.
In the second half of the 19th century, Astrakhan, as a port city, ranked second in Russia in the number of steam ships, second only to Odessa, and first in the number of sailing ships. Even at that time, the port played an important role in the transportation of oil and petroleum products. In 1888, 90 steam and 1,152 sailing ships were assigned to the Astrakhan port. Every year during navigation, up to 900 steamships, over 2,700 barges, about 3,000 other ships and more than 60 rafts arrived at the city piers. On the Volga, Bolda and Tsarev rivers, located within the modern city limits, an entire floating city of ships was built for more than 20 miles, the population of which during navigation exceeded 60 thousand people.
By the way, the maritime transport of Astrakhan played a huge role during the Great Patriotic War, the 70th anniversary of the Victory in which we will celebrate this year. Being at the junction of water and land routes, being the gateway to the Caucasus and Central Asia, Astrakhan was of great strategic importance.
In terms of traffic volume, the Astrakhan port was not inferior to the largest ports of the Soviet Union. Here the transshipment of bread, cotton, oil and other important cargo took place from sea vessels coming from the Caspian Sea to river vessels heading up the Volga inland. Substantial part industrial enterprises, including those supplying the maritime industry, was switched to the production of defense products. The shipyard named after S.M. Kirov built snowmobiles, minesweepers, and ship repair plants produced aerial bombs, mines, shells, and grenades. The shipyard produced submarines, armored boats, large caliber shells. In order to ensure the safety of navigation in the Astrakhan roadstead section, a paramilitary flotilla was created in August 1942.
During the war years, the need for fuels and lubricants increased sharply. The increasing number of transportations of various cargoes for the needs of the war and the need to provide fuel for sea and river vessels put on the agenda the restoration and construction of oil depots in Astrakhan and the construction of installations for dehydration of fuel oil for the production of diesel fuel.
Currently, the seaport of Astrakhan is a consolidated port, on the territory of which there are 16 port terminals located on the banks of the Volga River and united by one name. Thousands of Astrakhan residents work in port and port organizations. More than 100 business entities operate within the port’s borders (stevedoring, agency, bunkering, surveying companies, shipbuilding and ship repair enterprises, and others). The main enterprises operating the berthing front for various purposes are more than 10 companies involved in cargo transportation.
I believe that the role of the seaport of Astrakhan remains strategic for Russia today. This is a direct route to Iran, India, the countries of the Middle East and Central Asia.
The potential of the Astrakhan port complex, its geographical features are quite capable of ensuring international transit through the region. But in the current political climate, such a geographical location is rather a problem, since it makes the development of seaports dependent on politics.
Despite the complexity of the situation, nevertheless, in the near future, new cargo flows may appear due to expanded cooperation with Iran, which will be facilitated by the decision to use payments in rubles. During the recent visit of the head of the Astrakhan region, Alexander Zhilkin, to India, he and the leadership of this country discussed the prospects for the development of the International Transport Corridor (ITC) “North-South”, the active use of the ITC for the transit of goods from India to Russia through Iran and the Astrakhan region.
Of course, the implementation of such plans would contribute effective use infrastructure of the ports of Astrakhan and Olya, the total capacity of which today is more than 11 million tons of cargo per year.
"MP": Operators of sea terminals in the Caspian basin are going through difficult times today - there has been a drop in cargo traffic for several years. What results did the port of Astrakhan show at the end of 2014?
Indeed, as a result of international economic sanctions against Iran, the seaports of the Caspian basin showed a decrease in cargo turnover in 2013. At the end of 2014, the total cargo turnover of seaports increased slightly and amounted to 7.93 million tons (+0.8%) compared to 7.87 million tons in 2013. Of these, the volume of transshipment of dry cargo amounted to 3.5 million tons (+14.2%), liquid cargo - 4.4 million tons (-7.8%).
The volume of dry cargo transshipment increased due to grain, ferrous metals, packaged goods and timber. Transshipment of liquid cargo decreased due to crude oil by 4.3% and petroleum products by 2.2 times. An analysis of cargo turnover by type of transportation showed that the share of exports is 44%, imports - 9.3%, transit - 40.2%, cabotage - 6.5%.
If we consider the indicators of individual companies, it can be noted that cargo turnover increased for several operators of sea terminals of the port of Astrakhan: Astrakhan Port OJSC - by 1.5 times due to an increase in the volume of transshipment of grain and ferrous metals, Armada Group of Companies OJSC - by 42.7% due to an increase in the volume of transshipment of ferrous metals, LLC PKF Astrakhan Grain Terminal - more than 2 times. Among the companies that increased cargo turnover at the end of 2014 are Alfa-Port LLC, Zuid-West Port LLC, Finvesttorg LLC.
The indicators of cargo transshipment volumes were reduced by such operators as, for example, one of the large operators LLC "PKF "Central Freight District" - by 44.8% due to a decrease in transshipment of bulk and general cargo, FSUE "Makhachkala Sea Trade Port" - by 2.6% due to a decrease in the volume of transshipment of oil and petroleum products (at the same time, it increased the transshipment of grain), OJSC Olya Commercial Sea Port - by 15.1% due to a decrease in the volume of transshipment of ferrous metals.
The performance of ports is negatively affected by their poor technical equipment and worn-out equipment, which is also due to a lack of investment funds. In this matter, everything is interconnected: if there are cargoes, then there are financial resources, new equipment and new technologies.
"MP": What features do you have to deal with when ensuring the safety of navigation in the waters of the seaport of Astrakhan?
The port is located at the mouth of the Volga and runs from 3029 kilometers of the Volga River (Streletskoye stopping point) to 3063.7 kilometers of the river and further along the Volga-Caspian Sea Shipping Canal (VKMSK) to 65.3 kilometers of VKMSK. The water area of the seaport of Astrakhan is adjacent to the water area of the seaport of Olya.
Almost all port terminals are located within Astrakhan and are in close connection with the city infrastructure. The length of the water area is large, and the width of the river within the port’s borders is quite limited, which imposes a special responsibility on compliance with navigation rules.
The difference between Astrakhan and other ports is that access to the port’s waters is carried out either through inland waterways or through the port of Olya. The intensity of traffic in the waters of the port of Astrakhan is quite high, since vessels of the Russian Federal Security Service, military, customs vehicles, and vessels of local passenger lines are located here. In addition, within the port’s borders there is a large number of fishing areas. The peculiarities of the water area also include a large number of channels and islands, which also complicate the movement of ships.
Do not forget that navigation is carried out in the course of the river, which has a speed of 6 m/s during floods, and 2 m/s in normal times. Hydrometeorological conditions depend on changes in depths due to seasonal flood phenomena and the volume of water discharges from hydroelectric facilities; from the action of eastern winds, the speed of which reaches 20 m/sec and higher; from dust storms that reduce visibility; from frequent fogs at night and in the morning from November to February.
However, the port of Astrakhan is open for navigation all year round. In addition, it is a place of refuge for ships in stormy weather.
In the seaport of Astrakhan, pilotage of ships is mandatory. The port is within the coverage area of the GMDSS sea area A1. Security is ensured by VTS and ITSE. Technical equipment These systems allow for complete and round-the-clock monitoring of the situation on the territory and waters of the seaport.
"MP": Astrakhan is the northernmost port on the Caspian Sea, and it freezes in winter. At the same time, as you said, it is open for navigation all year round. How are the issues of providing icebreaker support resolved in the port and on the approaches to it?
Indeed, only two seaports in the Caspian basin - Astrakhan and Olya - freeze in winter. Accordingly, during the winter period there are unique navigation features. With the onset of sustainable subzero temperatures Ice formation and freezing begin, which complicates the movement of ships and creates the need for icebreaker assistance. At this time, much depends on the coordinated work of everyone involved in the transport process, as well as on technical condition icebreakers and fleet.
In order to organize the implementation of icebreaker assistance in the Russian ports of the northern part of the Caspian Sea and on the approaches to them, the composition of the Basin Commission for organizing the implementation of icebreaker assistance is annually approved, whose meetings are held weekly at the Federal State Budgetary Institution "AMP of the Caspian Sea" with the organization of a teleconference with the ports of Olya and Makhachkala. To ensure icebreaker assistance for ships, the composition of the Icebreaker Assistance Headquarters is approved.
As a rule, the icebreaker season begins in mid-December and ends in mid-March. During the winter navigation of 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, icebreaker assistance was provided by three icebreakers - “Captain Bukaev”, “Captain Chechkin” and “Captain Metsayk”, operating in the waters of the seaports of Astrakhan, Olya and the Astrakhan roadstead. The results of the winter navigation of 2013-2014 are as follows: the number of icebreaker assistance - 96, of which 46 to the ports of Astrakhan and Olya, and 50 to the ports of Astrakhan and Olya. The number of vessels carried out - 422, of which to the exit from the ports of Astrakhan, Olya - 210, for arrival at the ports of Astrakhan, Olya - 212; included in the pilotage of ships over 30 years old and more than 104 vessels, 171 voyages completed.
Ice and hydrometeorological navigation conditions were as follows: maximum ice thickness in the open (sea) part of the VKMSK - 20-30 cm, in hummocks - 70-100 cm; in the closed (shore) part of the channel the ice thickness is 15-20 cm, in layers - up to 60 cm.
Preliminary results of the winter navigation of 2014-2015 show that, cumulatively, from December 4, 2014 to February 16, 2015, 301 ships were taken out of the port of Astrakhan, 303 ships were brought back from the sea, 25 ships were taken out of the port of Olya, brought from the sea as many. In total, 604 vessels were carried out with icebreaking operations to the port of Astrakhan, and 50 vessels to the port of Olya, of which 170 vessels were 30 years old or more.
It should be noted that vessels without ice reinforcements and tug-barge convoys are not allowed to sail during winter navigation in the waters of the ports of Astrakhan and Olya. And those vehicles that have an ice class are allowed to move independently under the control of icebreakers. For ships whose hulls do not have ice reinforcement, special anchorages are organized during winter navigation, where the safety of their stay during long layovers is ensured.
Seaports No. 1 (2015)