OREANDA-NEWS. January 20, 2011. Russia-based National Container Company (NCC)'s container terminal traffic turned a corner in 2010. Following a dramatic decline of 33.5% in 2009, it rebounded by 12.4%, up to 1,297,921TEU, despite being eventually capacity restrained again in St Petersburg, and having operations in Illichevsk suspended.

Its First Container Terminal in St Petersburg experienced the biggest increase - 23.5%, up to 1,159,989TEU, while NUTEP in Novorossiysk recorded smaller growth of just 3.2%, up to 124,626TEU.

Final figures for both ports are still awaited, but in the first eleven months of the year FCT's traffic increased by 25.4%, up to 1,067,673TEU, whereas St Petersburg's total traffic grew more impressively by 46.9%, up to 1,756,001TEU, giving some indication of the facility's capacity restraints.

NCC's Ust-Luga container terminal, just next door, is intended to take some of the pressure of FCT, although much remains to be done to get it up and running, including the development of hinterland connections to Moscow. Its first phase is due to open later this year. In the meantime, NCC still has its off-dock terminal in Shushary, 17km outside of St Petersburg, to act as a safety valve.

Last year its Logistika Terminal there handled 18,510TEU, including 10,388TEU of full containers and 8,122TEU of empties. However, it has yet to start taking full containers evacuated in bond from FCT, which function is only expected to start later this year. Since Logistika Terminal acquired rail access in October, 16 container block trains have been formed and despatched.

Recent expansion work in NUTEP terminal enabled NCC to increase its capacity up to 260,000TEU. In the first eleven months of last year this helped the terminal operator to increase its traffic by 9.3%, up to 112,181TEU according to Seanews, although Novorossiyk's total traffic leapt by a more impressive 40.5%, up to 112,181TEU.

The terminal now faces much more serious competition from Novoroslesexport Terminal (NLE), on the other side of the harbour, whose deep-water quay extension enabled it to increase its traffic by 220%, up to 162,897TEU.