Russian URALCHEM and Latvian Riga Commercial Port to Build a New Terminal on the Baltic Sea

    MOSCOW, RUSSIA, August 03, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Riga City Council on July 26th issued a permit for the construction of a terminal for handling and storage of fertilisers - a joint project between URALCHEM Freight Limited (part of the URALCHEM holding) and SIA Rigas tirdzniecibas osta - RIGA COMMERCIAL PORT (RTO, Riga, Latvia). The total investment level will amount to about $70 million. The launch of the first phase with a capacity of 2 million tons per year is planned for the 3rd quarter of 2013.

URALCHEM Freight Limited and RTO entered into an agreement to build the terminal in 2009. For the purposes of implementing the project, the two companies set up Riga Fertiliser Terminal Limited, 51% of which belongs to the URALCHEM holding company and 49% to RTO. Currently the design stage of the project is nearing completion. Construction work is scheduled to begin in September 2011. The facility will occupy 12 hectares of the territory of Free Port of Riga.

Dmitry Konyaev, CEO of URALCHEM, OJSC, commented: "The terminal is one of the priority projects for the company. We deliver our export shipments by sea, so creating our own transshipment facilities on the Baltic Sea will enhance the company's position in the global market and optimize our logistics flows, reduce transport costs and ensure greater flexibility to meet the demands of end consumers."

"The project to build a specialized transshipment terminal is a good example of mutually beneficial cooperation between Russian merchants and the cargo port of Riga. We expect to attract investments of tens of millions of dollars, including EU funding," said Ralph Klavins, Chairman of the board of directors of RIGA COMMERCIAL PORT.

The terminal will be built using latest technologies and the transshipment and storage of fertilisers will be made in enclosed facilities, providing environmental protection and safety for the residents of Riga.

URALCHEM is one of the largest producers of nitrogen and phosphate fertilisers in Russia and the CIS with production capacities of over 2.5 million tonnes of ammonium nitrate, 2.2 million tonnes of ammonia, 0.8 million tonnes of MAP and DAP, 0.8 million tonnes of complex fertilisers and 0.5 million tonnes of urea. URALCHEM is the second largest ammonium nitrate producer in the world and number one in Russia. URALCHEM's key production assets include Azot Branch of URALCHEM, OJSC in Berezniki, Perm Region; Kirovo-Chepetsk Chemical Works, OJSC in Kirovo-Chepetsk, Kirov region; Voskresensk Mineral Fertilisers, OJSC in Voskresensk, Moscow region.

Website: http://uralchem.com

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