Russia’s Port of Vladivostok

Freely translated as ‘a Ruler of the East‘, Vladivostok gives Russia a valuable opportunity to explore the Pacific. It stretches to the south-eastern end and touches the Sea of Japan enabling the country to conduct bulk Asian trade. In 2019, cargo turnover reached the mark of 11,7 million tons.

Vladivostok is the eastern terminus of the fabled Trans Siberian Railway, the world’s longest railroad connecting Russia’s Far East to Moscow and farther west to European countries.

The Port of Vladivostok is the busiest and largest hub on Russia’s Pacific coast. It is the base for the Russian Navy’s Pacific Fleet. The primary businesses of Vladivostok’s Port are shipping and commercial marine fishing. Vehicles are a major item of import at Vladivostok, from where they are mostly transported further inland.

Port History

Vladivostok was established as a Russian military outpost in 1860. It was an era when explorers, Cossacks, and conquerors swept through the uncharted expanses of Siberia and the Far East to establish a vast Eurasian empire. The city’s forward position in the Far East’s extreme south contributed to its significant role as a port and naval station. The primary Russian Pacific naval base was relocated to Vladivostok in 1872, with the city growing rapidly after that. In 1880, Vladivostok was granted city status. The Chinese Eastern Railway, a shortcut linking Vladivostok and Port Arthur with the city of Chita and other destinations of the Russian Empire, had been constructed by Russia across Manchuria, from 1897 to 1902. It boosted the city’s economy and its significance.

During WWI, Vladivostok was the main Pacific port of entry for military and railway supplies sent by the United States to Russia. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, foreign forces, predominantly Japanese, conquested Vladivostok in 1918 and stayed there until 1922. The anti-revolutionary movement in Vladivostok started at the same time, but shortly faded, and Soviet control of the region was established.

Throughout the Soviet era, Vladivostok was home to the Pacific Fleet, and this role considerably expanded in the decades following WWII. For almost five decades, from the late 1950s until the time when Soviet power waned by 1990, Vladivostok was closed to international shipping and other interactions due to its military importance. Its primary function as a commercial port was reestablished later — it became both a gateway to other Far East seaports of Russia and a point of entry for imports from China, Korea, Japan, and other countries.

General Description and Contact Info

Port Location: Vladivostok, Russia

UN/LOCODE: RUVVO

Longitude: 131° 53′ 25″ E

Latitude: 43° 5′ 40″ N

Corporate Office: 9, Strelnikova St, Vladivostok 690950, Russia

Web Site: www.vmtp.ru

Email: mcport@vladcomport.ru

Phone: 4232 222-364

Port Commerce: Business Profile, Operations, Size, Capacity, Turnover

Vladivostok, a seaport and a seat of the local government of the Primorsky Krai, is located in extreme SE Russia and stretches along the country’s borders with North Korea and China. The Port was established around the shores of the Golden Horn Bay, off the Sea of Japan; it extends about 510 nautical miles NNE of the South Korean Port of Busan and almost 470 nautical miles NW of the Japanese Port of Sakai.

Vladivostok Port is an important commercial and passenger harbor, serving as a link between the Trans-Siberian Railroad and the Pacific seaports. The city of Vladivostok is a major economic, scientific, and cultural center of Russia’s Far East. In 2005, the Port of Vladivostok had a population of over 586,000 people, with college-age students making up a large portion of it.

Vladivostok’s winters are very distinctive of Manchuria: windy, cold, and clear. Snow is sparse and may not fall at all in certain years. The weather is usually consistent — cold and clear.

Far East Development Corporation is the managing company of the Vladivostok Free Port, which is owned entirely by the Government of the Russian Federation.

As of now, the Port has authorized over 20 stevedoring enterprises to operate its facilities. The Port’s yearly cargo throughput — including the total throughput of all stevedoring enterprises — exceeded 21.2 million tons in 2018.

The Port of Vladivostok is 55.2 ha in size, with a 20 to 30 m deep harbor approach. The Port has 4.2 km of quays with up to 15 m of alongside depth and 17 berths for commercial freight and passengers. Rail tracks support each berth, a total of 20 km of railways serve the Port. The Port comprises 63.4 thousand sq. m of sheds and a 17.6-ha open storage area. There are two 5,000 sq. m refrigerated warehouses.

Vladivostok handles a variety of freight, including bulk, liquid cargo, timber, general cargo, containers, and passenger ships. It processes a wide range of export-import and cabotage general cargo. The Port is home to an oil terminal. Port’s primary equipment includes: mobile cranes, container handlers, non-road vehicles, forklifts, terminal tractors, toploaders. The terminals are equipped to upload/unload 20-ft, 40-ft, 45-ft containers.

The Port is strategically located at the crossroads of international shipping lanes. While originally established in 1897 to handle domestic freight, Vladivostok Port went to process foreign freight in 1991. The overall volume of international seaport trade in 2015 was worth more than 11.8 billion dollars. Foreign trade was conducted with 104 countries.

Vladivostok Port is a rapidly expanding freight circulation domain of Russia. The Port authorities are actively working on a number of initiatives to upgrade and expand the Port’s capacity. Development of an integrated container terminal that can be operated from a single-user base, with a capacity of 600,000 TEUs, is among those projects.

The Vladivostok Container Terminal (VCT) is a joint venture of the National Container Company and the Port of Vladivostok. The VCT, which has been in operation since 1983, handles heavy-lift cargo, containers, as well as serves seabound vessels and rail trains. With an alongside depth of 11.6 m, the VCT quay can handle 2 mega container ships simultaneously. The VCT has a capacity of processing 150,000 TEUs of containerized freight each year.

The Vladivostok Automobile Terminal (VAT) was constructed to handle automobiles and other vehicles for further inland distribution in Russia and the CIS nations. The VAT provides core services such as stevedoring, storage, and logistics. The VAT features three temporary storage facilities, including a ten-level structure that can hold 1,000 cars.

The future South Primorye Terminal will be an important full-service logistics hub for Far East businesses. It was designed to serve two primary purposes. The inland intermodal terminal, or dry port, will support Russian seaports in the South Far East, while the warehouse and distribution center will provide end-to-end high-tech integrated warehousing, handling, transportation and processing of imports and exports to the major cities of the Primorsky Krai.

Advantages of Shipping with the Port of Vladivostok

Vladivostok is committed to promote and expand global trade as well as to boost the local economy by giving its clients and partners competitive advantages.

The Port is strategically located at the intersection of international shipping lanes. Japan, South Korea, China, and Vietnam are among its major commercial partners.

The Port’s geographic and climatic location allows for year-round navigation.

With an upgraded cargo-handling infrastructure, the Port is one of the largest multi-purpose and the best-equipped ports in Russia’s Far East.

Vladivostok is a leader in terms of volume of containers handled in the Russian Far East: up to 11 million tons of cargo processed annually. Pulp, metal products, cars, and general cargo are among its main commodities.

Well-developed rail infrastructure gives competitive advantages for the company to provide the further shipment of the cargo to inland Russia.

Over 3,500 people work at the Port. There are nearly 60 port-related businesses, including freight-forwarders, stevedore agencies, surveying, tally, towage, and other companies offering services complying with international standards.

Prices, Fees, and Tariffs at the Port of Vladivostok

The list of tariffs, rates, and harbor fees in Russia’s seaports, including in Vladivostok, is approved, reviewed, and updated by the Ministry of Transport of Russia.

Freight rates paid by freight forwarders at Vladivostok Port are determined by a number of factors, including shipping distance, urgency, the total size of products, cargo classification, and temperature requirements.

For current foreign and coastal shipping rates incl. navigation dues, canal dues, lighthouse dues, pilotage dues, ecological dues, ice-breaking dues, investment dues at the Port of Vladivostok, visit https://www.rosmorport.com/filials/vlf_portcharges/, the official website for Rosmorport, the Russian Federal Agency for Marine and River Transport.

CREDO TRANS is here for you to provide the best rates for shipping an FCL or LCL container from/to Vladivostok. Get negotiation guidance from our team of experts if you want to reduce shipping costs while increasing overall operational productivity in Russia, particularly in the Port of Vladivostok.

Top Shipping Routes To/From the Port of Vladivostok

The Port supports 16 shipping lines, including 2 lines for vessels with passenger accommodation, 4 roll-on/roll-off lines, and 10 container lines.

Currently, the top 5 routes to ship containerized cargo to/from Vladivostok Port are as follows: Los Angeles – Vladivostok, New York – Vladivostok, Long Beach – Vladivostok, Nagoya – Vladivostok, Port of Ho Chi Minh City – Vladivostok.

When it comes to shipping to/from the US, the route Long Beach – Vladivostok takes the longest to ship a container to/from Vladivostok — 55 days on average. With an average travel time of 4 days, the route Charlotte – Vladivostok is the fastest. The shortest routes are Columbus – Vladivostok, which takes 4 days on average, and Greensboro – Vladivostok, which takes 4 days on average.

Top Reasons to Choose CREDO TRANS for Transport and Logistics at the Port of Vladivostok

Since its inception in 2008, CREDO TRANS has been a leading sea freight transport operator. Trust our freight shipping experts who use their deep expertise of freight services to deliver meaningful improvements for your business.

For the past 13 years, CREDO TRANS contributed greatly in linking Russian businesses with global markets and making supply chains customer-centric. CREDO TRANS believes that the Port of Vladivostok has a lot of economic potential. Vladivostok ranks among the most important cities in terms of transportation and logistics in Russia’s Far East. Our experts strongly advise operators to use the Port of Vladivostok as a hub for further expansion and success on the Russian market.

Our company collaborates with the world’s major seaports and busiest freight hubs. CREDO TRANS moves sea freight on 57 routes through its representative offices, employing the infrastructure of all terminals at Russia’s busiest ports, including the Port of Vladivostok. Whether it’s regular, oversized, heavy-lift, or refrigerated cargo, our company has extensive local expertise and a global network of agents to deliver your goods to their destination on time. We meet a wide range of needs related to freight forwarding and customs logistics services, including the transportation of perishable goods in refrigerators through the Port of Vladivostok, at the most competitive rates. CREDO TRANS’s long-term partnerships with sea line agents at the Port of Vladivostok give our customers an advantage to get special deals on sea freight transportation to/from the Port. We possess a great deal of experience and knowledge to make the customs clearance process in Vladivostok smooth for you. Besides, CREDO TRANS provides access to a large fleet of trucks to guarantee time-definite delivery.

The rest of the world is just a short hop away with CREDO TRANS.