Moscow eyes proposal for Belarus to build fertilizer terminal in Russian port

The Russian Ministry of Transport can suggest that Belarusian shippers construct their fertilizer terminal in a Russian port, Deputy Minister Yuri Tsvetkov told reporters on Monday.

"This issue [the transshipment of Belarusian products in Russian ports] is now being addressed. The Ministry of Transport together with the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Industry and Trade continues working on it and holding discussions. The traffic chain of such goods was traced with the participation of the Belarusian government and business representatives. The railway is used for carriage over the territory of Belarus and Russia; the cost of handling for such cargo types in ports and the cost of freight are also taken into account," the official said.

Russian Railways already provides a 50-percent discount for its Belarusian colleagues, Tsvetkov said. The throughput cost in ports is often higher though because there are no long-term Take-or-Pay contracts. No discounts from the budget are planned to reduce the transportation cost of Belarusian goods. Russia will also probably offer construction of a fertilizer terminal in one of its ports to Belarus.