Makhachkala port starts shipping fertilizers to Iran

MAKHACHKALA. Oct 11 (Interfax) - Makhachkala's Commercial Sea Port company has shipped fertilizers to Iran for the first time, the port's press service said.

The first vessel carrying export agricultural products left the port on Tuesday. The Caspian Aryana dry cargo ship is heading to Iran.

"The vessel is carrying more than 3,000 tonnes of export cargo. The potassium chloride was transshipped at the dry-cargo harbor terminals. In the near future another 8,000 tonnes of fertilizers will be shipped to Iranian consignees," the port's acting general director, Rustam Kerimov, said in a statement.

The CEO noted that the port would continue to expand economic contacts with businesses from Asian countries. "Since the beginning of this year, in particular, over 130,000 tonnes of cement have been shipped from Iran to Dagestan by sea. Moreover, Russian entrepreneurs have shipped more than 150,000 tonnes of grain to Iran. By the end of 2022, the port staff expects to substantially increase the volume of export and import shipments," Kerimov said.

The port is currently increasing its fleet, he said.

As previously reported, the total volume of dry cargo shipments in the port soared 1.8 times over nine months. More than 320,000 tonnes of cement, grain, clinker, metal, salt, and other dry cargoes were processed in that period.

The Makhachkala Commercial Sea Port is comprised of facilities for shipping dry cargo with a capacity of three million tonnes a year, light and dark petroleum products (7.9 million tonnes), moors for general and bulk-loaded cargo and containers (1.2 million tonnes), rail and ferry terminals (1.3 million tonnes), and a grain terminal (0.5 million tonnes). Navigation in the Makhachkala port is possible all year round, and it can receive vessels that are up to 150 meters long and whose drafts are up to 4.5 meters.