Murmansk takes control over Arctic ports

Source: http://barentsobserver.com/en/arctic/2014/01/murmansk-takes-control-over-arctic-ports-31-01

By Trude Pettersen (January 31, 2014)

Port of Murmansk will become the head administration office for all port in the Russian Arctic. (Photo: Trude Pettersen)

Russia is reforming its port industry and plans to reduce the number of head offices from 20 to 8. All Arctic ports will be controlled form Murmansk.

One of the first ports to be reorganized is Port of Arkhangelsk, which from now on will be administered from Murmansk. The number of administrative staff like accountants, economists and lawyers will be cut down and some ten people will be without jobs when the administration moves, head of the port’s administration Nikolay Gurinov says to Regnum. The aim of the reorganization is to cut expenses to administration.

The Administration office of Port of Murmansk already has branches in Kandalaksha and Vitino on the Kola Peninsula, Naryan-Mar in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Mezen in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Dudinka and Dikson in Krasnoyarsk Kray, and Sabetta on the Yamal Peninsula, according to Murmanskiy Vestnik.

Russia’s port administrations are federal government agencies that supervise safety at sea according to Russian law and international agreements; they perform ecological surveillance, organize sailing regulations and provide information and radar services, pilot services, towing services and icebreaking services.