Cargo to Chukotka arrives too late | Polarjournal
Containers are piling up in the port of Vladivostok. Ships can therefore no longer be unloaded and cargo is delayed in reaching its destination. (Photo: FESCO)

A difficult situation has developed in the delivery of goods to Chukotka. From July to September, three times fewer ships arrived in the ports than usual. Now the authorities have started negotiations on organizing ice escorts for ships to sail to the region with the delayed cargo. It is planned to use icebreakers to deliver goods located in Vladivostok. The newspaper EastRussia had previously reported that the ports in Vladivostok could not cope with the increased inflow of goods due to capacity constraints. Some containers are delayed by up to three months.

Time is pressing: from November to May the port of Anadyr, the main town of Chukotka, can only be reached by icebreaker due to ice formation. (Image: Heiner Kubny)

According to press reports, some ships will not be able to call at and unload from ports for two to three weeks. The reason is the unprecedented influx of containers from China bound for Europe. Currently, transport to Europe via Vladivostok and other ports along the Trans-Siberian Railway is 30-40% cheaper than shipping through the Suez Canal.

As the director of strategy and development of the shipping company FESCO, Maxim Shishko, said, as a result, imports through the ports of the Far East of Russia increased by 38% in the last eight months. Experts see the insufficient capacity of the railways as the biggest obstacle, and the inadequate development of the checkpoints also leaves its mark. Containers are already piling up on arrival in Moscow.

Egvekinot is in desperate need of supplies. The place at the Arctic circle can be supplied also in the summer only by ship. The last supply ship usually leaves the port by the end of September. (Image: Heiner Kubny)

Chukotka must act

According to the administration in Anadyr, about 200 containers with cargo for Chukotka should still be in Vladivostok. Together with the containers, 35 units of equipment necessary for the functioning of state enterprises in the region are to be sent. The priority is the delivery of food and essential goods. The deliveries have been overdue for several weeks.

Now the Chukotka government is negotiating with Rosmorport to get an icebreaker to escort cargo ships. Shipping to the ports in Chukotka is expected to be limited from the beginning of November due to ice formation.

Heiner Kubny, PolarJournal

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