At a prime-ministerial ceremony in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, in Sochi on the Black Sea, signed by and between Badr Jafar, Managing Director of the Crescent Group and Vice Chairman of Gulftainer, and Ust-Luga Port Company Chairman Valeriy Israylit, and in the presence of U.A.E. Ambassador to the Russian Federation HE Omar Ghobash, the agreement is believed to be the largest UAE private company investment in Russia to date.
Gulftainer is expected to invest more than USD 275 million into the terminal venture for development. Ust-Luga is a key port gateway into the heart of Russia’s buoyant Baltic Western region and will provide a quality alternative to the relatively congested St Petersburg Port.
Badr Jafar commented, “This is another big step for the Gulftainer Group as we expand our global footprint into the most dynamic region of Russia. As the country’s vast potential is increasingly realised the Baltic Western region will play a vital role, handling as it does around 60% of Russian container volumes”.
Volumes through the Baltic have risen dramatically in recent years but there is huge scope for growth as the ratio of containers handled to population is still only 30 per 1000 people in Russia compared with 168 per 1000 in the EU.
“We believe that Gulftainer’s expertise honed over 35 years in the most testing of competitive environments, coupled with our Russian colleagues’ knowledge and determination will ensure that this new deepwater terminal – the biggest port infrastructure project of the Russian Federation – will provide the best service in the region, boosting trade for the Russian hinterland”, Gulftainer Managing Director Peter Richards commented.
As the largest private terminal operator in the world and the first port operator from the Middle East to invest in Russia’s Baltic region, Gulftainer and its partner intend to ensure that the Russia gateway terminal at Ust-Luga will set new standards of efficiency and productivity, aiming to handle 170 m tons of cargo when fully developed.
“We are glad that such a major and experienced logistics player as Gulftainer has come to work in Ust Luga .This fact demonstrates that Russia is becoming a prominent player in the global market of transport services. I believe that Gulftainer’s presence will also for example help to increase the car transshipment volumes of the multipurpose terminal.New services will be introduced by the port and also developing the warehousing logistics centre and handling new types of cargo will be a priority “, said Maksim Shirokov , Director General of Ust Luga company.