16 Nov 2022 12:38

Investment in Aurora Seaport in Primorye expected to top 200 bln rubles - authorities

VLADIVOSTOK. Nov 16 (Interfax) - The construction of the new Aurora Seaport in Primorye should be completed by 2030 at a cost of more than 200 billion rubles, the regional government's press service said.

The project, which is being carried out by Aurora Seaport LLC on Bezymyannaya Bay, was designated a priority for the region at a meeting of the Primorye council for attracting investment in the regional economy that Governor Oleg Kozhemyako held on Tuesday.

"About 700 specialists will work at the port. The amount of investment will total more than 200 billion rubles. The main purpose of the terminal is receiving cargo from freight cars, accumulation, short-term storage and loading onto marine vessels," a statement issued after the council meeting said.

It was reported earlier that Russian Railways (RZD) had issued technical specifications for the design of the rail line to the Aurora terminal for handling coal and oil.

"There will be wind protection and sprinkling systems here, technology that is as enclosed as possible. There will be an environmental review of the project - a federal level assessment," the deputy chairman of the Primorye government, Yelena Parkhomenko was quoted as saying by the press service.

The project to build the new port in Primorye was begun by Coalstar LLC, whose CEO Boris Varshavsky said at a Russian-Chinese energy forum in November 2021 that the Aurora coal and oil terminal would start round-the-clock transshipment of cargo in 2025. The planned depth of the berths will make it possible to accommodate bulk carriers with deadweight of 180,000 tonnes.

The terminal will have capacity to handle 35 million tonnes per year, including 25 million tonnes of coal and 10 million tonnes of oil. The cost of the project was estimated at about 57.8 billion rubles at the time.

Aurora Seaport LLC was incorporated in 2019 in Fokino, Primorye, the Unified State Register of Legal Entities showed. The company is wholly owned by Moscow-based JSC Business Project, the CEO of which is Eduard Khudainatov.