Port of Ventspils
Port of Ventspils | |
---|---|
Location | |
Country | Latvia |
Location | Ventspils |
Details | |
Operated by | Freeport of Ventspils |
Land area | 2451.39 ha |
No. of berths | 57 |
Total length of berths | 10 910 m |
Free territory | 700 ha |
Water area | 242.60 ha |
The port of Ventspils is an Ice-free, deep-water sea port located in Ventspils on Latvia's Baltic coast. Its total area is 2451.39 hectares. By cargo turnover it is one of the Baltic Sea's busiest ports positioned in the top twenty of the list of leading European ports.[1]
The port of Ventspils became a multimodal port when the harbour was significantly deepened in 1998, reaching a maximum depth of 17.5 meters in the liquid bulk area. This allowed the accommodation of the largest vessels then operating in the Baltic Sea, including Aframax-size tankers with maximum 150.000 metric tons deadweight (DWT). The dry bulk and general cargo area, with a depth of 16 meters, allows the terminal to accommodate Panamax-size vessels with their load capacities of up to 75.000 DWT.
Since 2002, the Freeport of Ventspils has been developing the industrialization process.
In the Financial Times release of the FDI Intelligence study in 2015, the Port of Ventspils was awarded for the global scale of operations, development of production buildings and infrastructure improvements.[2][3]
History
The first written evidence of the port of Ventspils dates back to 1263. In the 13th century, a simple berth was built for merchant ships.
During the reign of Duke Jacob from 1642 to 1682, Ventspils became the main port of the Duchy of Kurzeme and Zemgale. Shipyards were active, selling more than 135 ships. Due to the unfrozen port, the import and export of goods of the Russian Empire through the port of Ventspils increased rapidly at the end of the 18th century. In the 19th century, piers, new berths, warehouses, cellars, elevators equipped with Japanese equipment and grain boilers were built and installed in the port of Ventspils. At the beginning of the 20th century, Ventspils became part of the Russian railway network, overtaking Liepaja in terms of freight transport.
The port of Ventspils lost its significance during the First and Second World Wars, but in the 1960s Ventspils regained the status of a transit center.
In the second half of the 1990s, the restructuring of Ventspils port began. The Port Administration (since 1997 - Ventspils Freeport Authority) became the manager and developer of the port territory. Since 1997, the status of the SEZ (Special Economic Zone) has enabled companies to receive significant tax incentives and to develop in a favorable investment environment. In 2002, the Ventspils Freeport Authority started to expand the port's industrial zone, attracting industrial producers to Ventspils.[4]
Port services
All types of handling of liquid and dry bulk and general cargo as well as vessel services are available at the port of Ventspils, a majority of which are provided by private enterprises operating in the territory of the port and are as follows:[5]
- Terminals - liquid cargo terminals, dry bulk cargo terminals, general cargo terminals
- Shipping agencies
- Ferries
- Tug services
- Ship bunkering
- Pilots - navigation of the vessel into the port
- Mooring
- Shipyard - docking, inspection, cleaning and other maintenance services
- Industrial diving
- Collection of Marine waste
- Ship chandler - supply of spare parts, food and rescue funds
- Offices for rent
- etc.
The Freeport of Ventspils
Ventspils port is managed by the Freeport of Ventspils, which is supervised by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia, under various statutory authorities:
- the 1994 Law on ports (regarding operations and procedures);
- the 1997 Ventspils Freeport Law (which provides for businesses within the port);
- the 2002 Law on Tax Application in Free Ports and Special Economic Zones, which regulates tax incentives for those businesses within the port.[6]
The strategic goals of the Freeport of Ventspils Authority are:
- to maintain and strengthen the current positions of the port in the liquid and bulk cargo market;
- to attract new types of activities and services to the port;
- to develop industrial activities in the industrial territories of the Freeport.
The future prospects of Ventspils port are related to the expansion of the North Port in the sea direction, with a dedicated land of 100 ha.
The Port of Ventspils acts as a regional economic developer, supporting companies that specialize in creating high value-added services and products.
Industrial production
In the Freeport of Ventspils, more than 500 ha are intended for industrial production. The territory of Ventspils Industrial Park is adaptable to the production intentions of investors and is provided with the necessary infrastructure to start production (ready production premises, electricity, powerful IT, telecommunications). The land rent is adjusted in the amount of 0.25-0.5% of the cadastral value of the land with repurchase rights. In the initial stage of business operation, the support of the Ventspils High Technology Park (VHTP) Business Incubator in the field of infrastructure and services is available.
A multilingual workforce is available in Ventspils. One of the most prestigious vocational education and further education institutions - Ventspils Technical College-North Kurzeme Competence Center and Ventspils University College provides training of specialists of various levels in metalworking, mechatronics, engineering mechanics, automotive mechanics, energy, electronics, IT, telecommunications, radio astronomy, engineering, mechanical engineering. sectors. Ventspils industrial zone has excellent ICT (Information Communication Technologies) infrastructure and favorable conditions for the development of powerful data centers.
Industrial customers of Ventspils port industrial park[7]
Company | Year | Country of origin | Field of operations |
---|---|---|---|
ARBO Windows | 2014 | Latvia | manufacture of wooden windows, doors and facades; construction |
Baltic Forest Trading | 2004 | Sweden | woodworking; building materials |
Bio-Venta | 2008 | Latvia | biodiesel production |
Bucher Municipal | 2005 | Switzerland | manufacture of utility vehicles |
Diana Sveces | 2004 | Denmark | candle production |
EUROLCDS | 2013 | Latvia, Sweden | manufacture of liquid crystal display products |
Forta Prefab | 2015 | Latvia | manufacture of building modules |
FROLI Baltic | 2006 | Germany | manufacture of polyurethane products |
HansaMatrix Ventspils | 2005 | Latvia | manufacture of electronic systems and components |
Hydraulik Bauteile Baltic | 2008 | Germany | manufacture of hydraulic and pneumatic components |
IMMER Digital | 2017 | manufacture of flexible packaging | |
Kurzemes granulas | 2003 | Latvia | manufacture of wood pellets |
Malmar Sheet Metal | 2006 | Belgium | mechanical engineering metalworking |
Pobeda Confectionery | 2014 | Russia | chocolate production |
SQUALIO | 2013 | Latvia | software solution testing |
Ventspils Augsto tehnoloģiju parks | 2005 | Latvia | support services for the development of high-tech companies |
Ventspils elektronikas fabrika | 2005 | Latvia | manufacture of electronic systems and components |
Ventspils metināšanas rūpnīca | 2012 | Ukraine | manufacture of large metal structures |
Ventspils-Andren | 2009 | Latvia | manufacture of large - scale fiberglass industrial equipment |
Wasserkabel Baltic | 2017 | Germany | heating and cooling systems |
Terminals in Ventspils port[8]
Ventspils port terminals provide all liquid cargo, bulk and general cargo handling services. The maximum depth of liquid cargo is 17.5 m, draft 15 m, length of ships 275 m. The maximum depth of bulk cargo is 16 m, draft - 15 m and length - 240 m. The maximum depth of general, ro-ro, container cargo is 14.5 m, draft - 14.1 m, length of ships - 240 m.
Lejamkravu termināļi
Terminals | Year | Type of cargo |
---|---|---|
Baltic Juice Terminal | 2006 | food and feed bulk |
Vars | 1991 | chemical products |
Ventall Termināls | 2004 | chemical products, petroleum products |
Ventamonjaks serviss | 2006 | ammonia, chemical products, petroleum products |
Ventbunkers | 1994 | diesel fuel, fuel oil, oil products |
Ventspils Nafta Termināls | 1961 | oil products |
VK Terminal Services | 2006 | oil products |
Beramkravu termināļi
Terminals | Year | Type of cargo |
---|---|---|
Baltic Coal Terminal | 2008 | coal |
Eurohome Latvia | 2007 | general cargo, bulk cargo, metal alloys |
Kālija parks | 1993 | mineral fertilizers |
Ventspils Grain Terminal | 2005 | grain |
Ventspils Tirdzniecības osta | 1994 | coal, metal alloys, iron ore, peat, raw sugar |
Ģenerālo kravu termināļi
Terminals | Year | Type of cargo |
---|---|---|
Noord Natie Ventspils Terminals | 2000 | container cargo, ro-ro, timber |
Reefer Cargo Terminal | 2011 | frozen products |
Ventplac | 1995 | bulk cargo, peat, round wood, timber, wood chips |
Other port services
All service services are available at the Freeport of Ventspils 24/7: 12 cargo terminals of all types, 21 ship agencies, regular ferry traffic with Sweden, bunkering of ships, tugs, pilots, ship repair, divers, waste and polluted water reception, etc. services.
Transport connections
The port of Ventspils is included in the transport flow between the EU and the CIS countries and is the port of the TEN-T core transport network.
Ventspils is a part of the East-West railway corridor integrated into the Eurasian transport system. The dual-lane E-22 motorway of European significance leads through Ventspils, Ventspils Airport is also located in the territory of the Freeport of Ventspils. Ventspils is located ~ 2 hours drive from the largest air traffic center in Latvia - Riga International Airport (RIX).[9]
Ferry traffic
Ventspils port provides 2 ferry lines from Ventspils to Sweden (Nyneshamn) and Germany (Traveminde). Since 2010, the number of ferry passengers has increased tenfold, as well as the volume of car and other cargo transportation has significantly increased.
Regular cargo and passenger transportation is provided by the largest ferry operator in Europe - Stena Line.
At one time - from 2006 to 2008 - ferry trips were made to Menta in Estonia. The ferry service was operated by Saaremaa Laevakompanii's subsidiary SSC Ferries by ferry MS Scania.
Special economic zone - tax relief
The Freeport of Ventspils is a special economic zone (SEZ). Tax relief may be applied to Ventspils Freeport companies by fulfilling certain criteria. Direct tax relief for real estate and corporate income tax can reach 80%, while the amount of investment compensation - 35% (55% for small companies, 45% for medium-sized companies).[10]
In the study "Global Free Zones of the Future 2010/11", published in the British newspaper Financial Times, the Freeport of Ventspils was ranked fifth among the most promising free zones, as well as the best port free zone. zone 2010/11. The study showed that the port of Ventspils has some of the best conditions for the development of enterprises in the world.
According to the results of the study "Global Free Zones of the Future 2012/13" published in the Financial Times, the Freeport of Ventspils ranked seventh among the most promising special economic zones in the world and also ranked second among ports. Among special economic zones in Europe, this was the highest rating.
Infrastructure
Ventspils is on the East-West railway corridor and part of the Eurasian transport system, as well as European motorway route E22. Ventspils Airport is close by, and Riga International Airport (RIX) is approximately two hours' drive away.[11]
References
- ^ "File:Gross weight of seaborne goods handled (inward and outward) in main ports(1) in 2013 by type of cargo(2).png". http://ec.europa.eu.
{{cite web}}
: External link in
(help)|website=
- ^ "About the Port". Freeport of Ventspils. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
- ^ Intelligence, fDi. "Home". www.fdiintelligence.com. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Port History - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Port Services - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "LAWS AND REGULATIONS". Freeport of Ventspils. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
- ^ "Industrial Clients - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Terminals - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Connectivity - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Special Economic Zone - Freeport of Ventspils authority". www.portofventspils.lv. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
- ^ "Connectivity". Freeport of Ventspils. Retrieved 2016-04-07.