The Lavna coal transhipment terminal is located on the western shore of the Kola Bay within the Murmansk port area and is part of the project “Comprehensive Development of the Murmansk Transport Hub.”
The project includes the construction of a coal transhipment terminal with an annual transhipping capacity of 18 million tonnes and a dedicated railway line, as well as the improvement of the port area.
The construction of the Lavna port will promote freight turnover via the Northern Sea Route and enable year-round navigation.
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Speech at ceremony for launching coal shipment operations from Lavna coal transhipment terminal
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good evening, colleagues.
I am delighted to welcome all of you and to congratulate you on this landmark event in the development of Murmansk and the Russian Arctic as a whole. We have been working consistently and will continue to do so, building up momentum.
I would like to remind you that during the 4th Railway Congress in December 2023, we opened traffic on a new railway line running from Vykhodnaya station to the Lavna terminal, which was under construction in the Kola Bay. [Russian Railways CEO – Chairman of the Executive Board] Oleg Belozerov surely remembers this. Today we are taking another step in the development of the Murmansk Transport Hub by launching coal shipments from the new Lavna transhipment terminal.
I want to thank all the specialists involved in the implementation of this significant project for their hard work: the builders who laid access roads and erected the terminal, engineers, designers, railway workers, and specialists from many professions. Together you have accomplished a complex, large-scale work in challenging climatic conditions. Crucially, you have used cutting-edge technologies to build the coal terminal, reducing its environmental impact. This is vital for preserving the unique nature of the Arctic.
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The opening of the terminal will be a significant contribution to increasing the throughput capacity of our Arctic ports and creating additional opportunities for the coal mining industry. I should note that the coal being shipped is from Kuzbass. The new facilities will allow for the diversification of the logistics of Kuzbass coal supplies to foreign markets.
Today, Russia is strengthening its sovereignty, creating new points of growth for the economy and trade, and building efficient transport corridors, including by actively developing the Northern Sea Route, the entire global route from St Petersburg through the Arctic to Vladivostok.
The port of Murmansk is one of the key points on this important route. We will continue to increase its capacity by at least three times in the coming years, and in the long term, we should aim to reach even higher figures. We will achieve this through the construction of new terminals, state-of-the-art port infrastructure, as well as the expansion of short- and long-distance rail connections. All these plans should be closely linked to the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route, the growth of transshipment of not only Russian but also foreign cargoes, and the development of the domestic shipbuilding industry.
We discussed these issues and the development of our Arctic territories in detail today at the meeting on the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route. I touched on this in my address at the international Arctic Forum as well.
In conclusion, I would like to wish everyone further success and the new terminal personnel productive work.
Thank you and all the best! I wish you success.