IT IS ENVISAGED TO CARRY OUT 80% OF CARGO TRANSPORTATION BETWEEN ARMENIA AND RUSSIA BY POTI-PORT "KAVKAZ" FERRY LINK

Noyan Tapan
Jan 22, 2008

YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, NOYAN TAPAN. It is envisaged to carry out up to
80% of cargo transportation between Armenia and Russia by Poti-port
"Kavkaz" ferry link, Igor Levitin – the Russian minister of transport,
co-chairman of the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental commission on
economic cooperation, stated on January 21.

According to him, the ferry operating on this route has made more
or less regular trips since August 2007, and by the end of 2007,
various goods of nearly 30 thousand tons were transported by the
ferry. I. Levitin said that the ferry boat is more or less loaded
on its route from Russia to Armenia, while its being loaded during
trips in the opposite direction remains a problem to be solved by
businessmen of the two countries.

The president of Black Sea Ferry & Investments (BFI) LLC Hokim
Matchanov said that the ferry is required to make 4 trips a month
but it makes 3 trips because of being underloaded. Prior to that, the
ferry used to make a trip a month or every six weeks. In the initial
period the ferry transported 4 railroad cars, later – 8 ones during
each trip. BFI cooperates with all the eight forwarding companies
of Armenia. According to H. Matchanov, transportation by Poti-port
"Kavkaz" link is relatively expensive as the ferry is now loaded by 60%
(by 100% when heading from Russia to Armenia, by 10% in the opposite
direction). "Whenever we start increasing the ferry’s load in Russia,
some forwarding companies of Armenia launch anti-ferry campaign as
they are reluctant to transport their goods by ferry," he said,
underlining that transportation of goods by trucks is profitable
within distances of up to 500 km.

In his words, foodstuffs, wheat, flour, juices, timber are mainly
transported from Russia to Armenia. Cement, facing material, bentonite,
salt cake, mineral waters are mainly transported from Armenia to
Russia. He informed those present that it is still impossible to
transport excise tax-liable goods (cigarettes, alcoholic drinks)
by the ferry from Armenia to Russia due to the absence of a customs
supervision zone at the check point of the port "Kavkaz". He added that
such a zone will be created by late 2008 based on the intergovernmental
agreement signed in Yerevan on January 21.

The president of BFI expressed an opinion that due to higher
transportation speed, the ferry link will be competitive in case
of opening railway communication through the territories of Georgia
and Azerbaijan.