Representatives from the Russian port city of Arkhangelsk and the Belarusian government have held talks about the potential of creating a specialized terminal for the transshipment of Belarusian cargo, in particular potash, Interfax reported.
Arkhangelsk lies within the Arctic Circle, more than 1,000 kilometers from Moscow. Belarus is interested in the possibility of using Arkhangelsk for cargo transshipment, given that its port allows access to the ocean without crossing the territorial waters of other states, Interfax reported, citing Arkhangelsk Mayor Alexander Tsybulsky.
The Russian government earlier approved a program for the accelerated development of the Arkhangelsk transport hub through 2035. The program provides an infrastructure project to construct a deep-water area that will be able to accept ships with a draft of up to 15 meters and handle cargo year-round. The port currently requires the deployment of icebreakers to remain navigable during the winter months.
Since the imposition of Western sanctions, Belarus has been forced to reorient the transshipment of its export cargo to Russian ports and has also increased exports to China by rail. Belarus currently ships the lion’s share of its seaborne potash volumes through the port of St. Petersburg (GM June 23, 2023).
Belarus still has plans to build a port near Murmansk in northwest Russia to handle its potash and fertilizer shipments, according to Murmansk Oblast Governor Andrei Chibis speaking to Interfax in December (GM Dec. 15, 2023). Chibis said the current proposal is a request from Belarus for a separate port with a transshipment capacity of 5-7 million mt/y.
Belarus is also reported to be looking at the possibility of establishing logistics corridors and routes to India through Russia and Iran, according to a Tass report, citing Dmitry Krutoy, the Belarusian ambassador to Russia. The aim is reportedly to find an effective average tariff for delivery to Astrakhan, a seaport situated on the delta of the Volga River, some 100 kilometers from the Caspian Sea, and for transportation to Iran’s Caspian seaports for shipment across Iran and possibly ending with a corridor to India.
Krutoy reiterated the importance of the Indian market to Belarus. India imported 992,377 mt of potash from Belarus in 2021, according to Trade Data Monitor, the last full year before Western sanctions started to bite. India’s potash imports from Belarus fell to 383,566 mt in 2022.
Belarus and Iran last year agreed on the supply of 400,000 mt of Belarusian potash, though neither the delivery period nor how much of the volume would be consumed in Iran was disclosed (GM Nov. 10, 2023). Iran consumed just 20,000 mt of potash in 2022, according to IFA data, and sources believed the bulk of the 400,000 mt was destined for other markets.
Belarus began reorienting transshipments of its potash exports after Lithuania’s government terminated the railway transit contract between the country’s state-owned railway company Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (LTG) and Belaruskali as of Feb. 1, 2022, over national security concerns (GM Jan. 14, 2022). The Lithuanian government’s decision came in the wake of EU and US sectoral sanctions on Belarus.
The removal of the Lithuanian rail route effectively blocked Belaruskali’s key export route. Before the imposition of Western sanctions, the Belarus producer and its marketing/export arm, Belarusian Potash Co. (BPC), shipped 10-11 million mt of potash annually through the Lithuanian port of Klaipėda.