9 Aug 2012 14:27

Azov-Don basin ports up transshipment 8.7% in Jan-July

ROSTOV-ON-DON. Aug 9 (Interfax) - Ports on the Sea of Azov - Don River basin increased cargo transshipment by 8.7% year-on-year to 6.113 million tonnes in the period January-July this year.

That topped the forecast for the seven-month period by 3.1%, the state Azov-Don basin water routes and shipping management agency says on its website.

Of overall cargo turnover for the period, fuel oil accounted for 21.2% (1.295 million tonnes), sulphur for 19.8% (1.210 million tonnes), vacuum gas oil for 18.9% (1.120 million tonnes), crushed rock for 7.9% (482,600 tonnes), and diesel fuel for 5.7% (348,800 tonnes).

These ports handled 1.782 million tonnes of cargo in July alone, up 2.3% from July of last year.

Navigation in the zone the management agency is responsible for opened on April 1. This zone includes a 257.3-kilometer stretch of the Don River (including 245.3 km of transit route) from the mouth of canal #132 (gateway #15 2875.7 km) to the town of Aksai (3121 km), used for the regulation of shipping and part of the Unified Deepwater System of the European part of Russia. The overall length of the waterways under its management is 691.3 km.