Legendagro starts exporting grain to China through Zarubino port
VLADIVOSTOK. Feb 8 (Interfax) - Legendagro Group has begun shipping grain to China through the Zarubino port in Primorye, the Far East and Arctic Development Corporation (FEDC) reported.
The Russian-Chinese group's Legendagro Logistics, a resident of the Free Port of Vladivostok, shipped more 10,000 tonnes of corn through Troitsa Bay Seaport LLC, a stevedoring company at the Zarubino port, at the beginning of February. The shipment is expected to arrive at the Qingdao port in Shandong province in a few days.
The grain was loaded at the port continuously for five days, using an experimental method due to extremely cold weather, the FEDC said.
"The departure of the first vessel with grain with capacity of 10,000 tonnes is an important milestone in the history of the Zarubino port. Vessels usually ship 3,000 to 5,000 tonnes from this port. The increase in shipping volume could ease transportation from Primorye ports in general and double the volume of grain trading in 2023. The geography of shipments is broad and the volume of export and import cargo passing through Primorye to various Russian cities and other countries is growing. We will work on shipping our own cargo, as well as the cargo of outside companies," Legendagro Logistics LLC director Dmitry Savenkov was quoted as saying in the press release.
Legendagro Logistics shipped more than 200,000 tonnes of grain and oil crops through Primorye ports to China and South Korea on 49 vessels in 2022. Grain shipments through Zarubino will increase in 2023, Savenkov said.
Legendagro Logistics plans to invest 247.5 million rubles in logistics projects in Primorye over five years.
The company has acquired and leased truck tractors, semi-trailers, hopper cars and four mobile vessel loaders, and built storage facilities that can hold more than 38,000 tonnes of grain.
Legendagro Logistics was set up to implement an investment project to receive, process, store and transport grain by truck, railway and sea, as well as load cargo onto vessels at the Zarubino and Vladivostok ports, the FEDC said.
It was reported earlier that by 2025 Legendagro plans to build a terminal in Primorye to handle grain, oil crops and other bulk cargo with capacity of 1 million tonnes per year, as well as an intensive soybean processing plant with capacity of 220,000 tonnes per year. The overall cost of the projects was estimated at 6 billion rubles.
Legendagro's principal shareholder is China's Joyvio Beidahuang Agricultural Holdings (JBA).
The Zarubino ice-free port is located in the southern part of Primorye, in Troitsa Bay, near the maritime borders with Japan, China, South Korea and other countries in the Asia-Pacific region. It is a key link in the Primorye-2 international transport corridor.
Troitsa Bay Seaport LLC is owned by three Moscow companies: Violan LLC with 46.63%, Elarium LLC with 19.99% and Dialog Invest LLC with 33.38%, according to data from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities as of February 8. Violan is 99% owned by tycoon Iskander Makhmudov and Elarium is 99% owned by Andrei Bokarev.