Free port of Ventspils

The Free Port of Ventspils ( Ventspils Latvian Brīvosta ) is a seaport in Ventspils in the west of Latvia, is situated on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea

History

The port of Ventspils was mentioned in historical chronicles in 1263 for the first time. The 17th century was the era of rapid growth and dynamic development of the free port. Under the reign of Duke Jacob more than 135 ships were built in the shipyards of Ventspils and sold in other European countries. Ventspils at the time was an important member of the Hanseatic League, the Association of North German trading cities. The end of the 19th century was also a period of very rapid growth. At that time, the Freeport of Ventspils was a part of the Russian Empire and thus the first Baltic port, which was connected by rail with the interior and especially with Moscow and Rybinsk. During the reign of the Soviet Union of Freeport developed for transshipment center for petroleum and petroleum products and was connected by a pipeline to the Russian oil fields. Again, the world's largest terminal for handling liquid chemicals was (ammonia ) and potassium salt constructed and operated.

Current

Today, the Free Port of Ventspils is a deep-water port, which is the year completely free of ice. In terms of Frachtgutumschlag if this port is the largest in Latvia and one of the leading ports on the Baltic Sea, where he is listed among the top 20 of the European port rankings. 1998, the maximum depression of 17.5 meters of the harbor was completed, which allows the inclusion of the largest seagoing vessels in the Baltic Sea, Aframax tankers with maximum freight rate of 130,000 dwt. The dry goods sector and general freight loading area have been excavated 15.5 meters deep, which allows recording of up to 75,000 dwt with Panamaxschiffen.

Since 1997, the port of Ventspils, in addition to the free port also the special status of a special economic zone. This status allows companies that are resident in the port area to obtain tax breaks, creating a positive environment for investment.

The entire port area covers 2623.9 hectares. Included is the industrial area, which is an attractive location for port-related companies, but also for manufacturing and industrial companies. Located at the port terminals edit different types of cargo, such as Petroleum products, crude oil, different liquid chemicals, mineral fertilizers, various metals, wood products, coal, grain, fruit juice concentrates, as well as container and ro-ro cargo. Since 2000, Ventspils tried very actively to the development of containers and ro-ro traffic. As a result, container freight from Ventspils to the UK are carried out by the Geest North Sea Line currently regularly. Thanks to the strategic decision of the Stena Line port of Ventspils is a focal point for ferry transport with connections to Sweden, Germany and Estonia.

• Seaport
• Ventspils
• Traffic (Latvia )
• Special Economic Zone