Transshipments of Belarusian potash through Russian ports may increase to 8.4 million mt this year, up from the 3 million mt in 2022, according to an Interfax report on June 19, citing Russian Transport Minister Vitaly Savelyev. According to Savelyev, more than 4 million mt of Belarusian potash have been transported since the start of 2023.
Belarus began reorienting transshipment of its potash exports to Russian ports after Lithuania’s government in February 2022 terminated the railway transit contract between the country’s state-owned railway company Lietuvos Geležinkeliai’s (LTG) and Belarusian potash producer Belaruskali OAO over national security concerns (GM Jan. 14, 2022).
The Lithuanian government’s decision came in the wake of European Union and US sectoral sanctions on Belarus, which included, among other things, a ban on the trading and transit of potash. Without the Lithuanian rail route, Belaruskali was unable to export potash or NPKs via the Lithuanian port of Klaipėda, effectively blocking the producer’s key export route.
Before the imposition of Western sanctions, Belaruskali and its marketing/export arm, Belarusian Potash Co. (BPC), shipped 10-11 million mt of potash annually through Klaipėda.
Belaruskali signed a contract in June 2022 with St. Petersburg-based operator Keystone Logistics LLC to transship 2 million mt of potash in containers via the Bronka terminal through 2023, according to Bloomberg, citing a Kommersant report (GM June 24, 2022). Belarus in March was reported to already be using the Bronka terminal to transship its “main export items” (GM March 3, p. 27).
Belaruskali also has increased its exports to China by rail since sanctions were implemented. Belarus railed more than 1 million mt of potash to China in 2022, according to an Interfax report in January, citing Belarus Transport and Communications Minister Alexei Avramenko (GM Jan 6, p. 28).