NUTEP terminal project to bring first 10,000 TEU vessels into the Black Sea
The construction of a deepwater berth at the NUTEP terminal in the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk will allowRussia to offer regular year-round ice-free calls for vessels up to 10,000 TEU for the first time.
NUTEP, a subsidiary of DeloPorts and sister company to multimodal transport specialist Ruscon, is already the largest container terminal in the port but currently handles most deepsea cargo via transshipment at Istanbul or Piraeus.
Konstantin Kalugin, CCO of NUTEP, says: “The new deepwater quay will alter the status quo on the Black Sea and change existing supply chain networks in the region. It will reduce both shipping and terminal costs for clients and increase delivery speed by 4-12 days for cargo headed for Russia.”
The first piles have been driven for the new 341m quay after two years of planning and approvals, with completion scheduled for late 2018. The berth depth of 15.6m, compared with two berths of 12.3m today, will increase LOA (load line) to 320m from 270m. This will allow 8,000 – 10,000 TEU container ships to make regular calls to the Russian port for the first time.
The 26.5 hectare NUTEP terminal, already the best equipped in the region, will double in capacity to handle 700,000 TEU per annum as part of the project.
DeloPorts also owns and operates a grain terminal and a bunkering services company in Novorossiysk. Like NUTEP, the facilities have a technologically advanced infrastructure with equipment from leading manufacturers.
A DeloPorts spokesman says the NUTEP expansion project is an integral part of the company’s strategy to develop the stevedoring assets of the group. “We are investing in our facilities to ensure we can continue to offer our customers exactly what they need: fast, reliable and cost-effective services.”