Port of Tiksi, linking Lena River to Northern Sea Route, sees a bright future

Regional authorities say planned investments in the Port of Tiksi, in the Sakha Republic, will allow it to handle annual goods volumes up 300,000 tons. Adjacent infrastructure facilities in the Lena River will also be upgraded, says Taras Popov, a representative of the regional government.

About three million tons of goods are now annually transported on regional river ways, of which about 400,000 are shipped in the Arctic parts of the region by river-sea class vessels. Up to 100,000 of oil products are taken to the region along the Northern Sea Route, the regional government says.

Current annual port capacity in Tiksi is estimated to about 67,000 tons. There are nine mooring points, of which eight are for general cargo and one for oil products.

The shipping season in the area is limited to about 90 days, during which goods for regional settlements are unloaded in the port and subsequently sent further by river boat.

Tiksi is located on the shore of the Buor-Khada Gulf of the Laptev Sea, southeast of the Lena River delta. It has about 4,500 inhabitants. The local airport was recently approved for medium-size aircraft, as large as a Boeing 737-700 and air companies are now considering establishing regular flights to Moscow.