Container transshipment in Russian seaports decreased by 1.9% — where is the decline and where is the growth
The volume of cargo transshipment in containers at Russian seaports in the first nine months of 2025 amounted to 40.1 million tons, which is 1.9% less than in the same period last year, according to the Association of Commercial Seaports (ASOP). For comparison, in January–September 2024, 40.8 million tons of containerized cargo passed through Russian ports. It is noteworthy that a similar dynamics of decline was recorded a month earlier.
Despite the general decline, the situation in different basins is ambiguous. The growth was recorded in the Baltic and Azov-Black Sea directions — plus 6.6% and 3.8%, respectively. In the first nine months of 2025, 11.95 and 8.7 million tons of cargo were handled here. The Caspian basin showed a slight decrease of 2.9%, while the Far Eastern basin showed a more noticeable decrease of 7.9%. The largest drop was recorded in the Arctic region — minus 17.9% in annual terms, although this is already better than in the previous month, when the decline reached 18.3%.
At the same time, there are positive trends in the Arctic. The seaport of Arkhangelsk continues to develop its container business. According to the governor of the region, Alexander Tsybulsky, in 2024, container transshipment at the port reached its highest levels in the last seven years — about 16 thousand units. A significant role in this was played by the multimodal route Arctic Express No. 1, connecting the Moscow region, Arkhangelsk and Chinese Shanghai. Cargoes from central Russia are delivered to Arkhangelsk, from where they are sent to China via the Northern Sea Route.
At the Neva-2025 conference, Evgeniya Shelyuk, Minister of Economic Development and Industry of the Arkhangelsk Region, confirmed that the port of Arkhangelsk is gradually becoming the center of container transportation in the North. In 2024, about 230,000 tons of containerized cargo were handled here, almost 30 times more than in 2017. The Arctic Express No. 1 project also made a major contribution to the growth. Last year, five import and five export flights were carried out, and this season there are already four. The average transit time of the route is 20-25 days, which is significantly faster than the traditional route through the Suez Canal.
Further development of container transportation in the region is directly related to the construction of a new deepwater area of the port of Arkhangelsk. The project provides for the creation of a modern container terminal, which will become a key element of the infrastructure. According to forecasts, by 2031, the total cargo turnover of the new terminal may reach 25 million tons per year, which is several times higher than the current capacity of the existing port.
Today Arkhangelsk is considered as one of the strategic hubs of the Northern Sea Route, capable of becoming an important transit center for connecting Europe, Russia and China. Despite the general decline in container traffic in the country, the development of Arctic routes demonstrates the potential and long-term prospects for Russia in the maritime logistics market.
