OREANDA-NEWS. Metalloinvest and Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port (NCSP) signed a letter of intent, as part of which the partners plan to organise the shipment of iron ore and pig iron for export through the new bulk cargo complex at Novorossiysk port.

NCSP intends to implement its construction plan for the new complex, which will handle the intake, storage and transhipment of cargo from Metalloinvest by 2018. It is expected that shipments will increase by up to 10 million tonnes per year.

The agreement provides for the shipment of pellets, hot briquetted iron (HBI) and pig iron to the Mediterranean and Asia Pacific regions and countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

Andrey Varichev, CEO of Management Company Metalloinvest, commented: "Signing the new agreement with NCSP builds on many years of our mutually beneficial partnership and shall facilitate further expansion of Metalloinvest's export potential."

"Expanding bulk cargo operations is a strategic priority for NCSP Group, and today this strategy has been back up by cargo traffic expectations. This agreement speaks for convergence of NCSP's and Metalloinvest's interests in the long term", - commented CEO of PJSC NCSP Sultan Batov on the signature of agreement.