BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 29. The process of privatization of Makhachkala Sea Trade Port JSC (MSTP, Dagestan) has started based on the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation on the development of the North-South project signed on March 19, the Russian Media says, Trend reports.
The President of the Russian Federation has issued an order creating a joint stock company (JSC) named "North-South" with a starting capital of 5.6 billion rubles ($60.8 million). The first step in the company's operation is the transfer of the same order on the remaining 100 percent of JSC "North-South"'s shares of the Makhachkala port, which are valued at 1.25 billion rubles ($13 million) on the market.
"The Russian government will choose the MSTP investor in four months. Additionally, the investor's allowed capital share in the North-South joint-stock firm will increase to 51 percent within five years after his contribution to the Makhachkala port, while the Russian government's share will remain at 49 percent," the decree reads.
The Russian media outlets today named Senator Suleiman Kerimov among the main contenders for the MSTP.
Meanwhile, the operator of the North-South international transportation corridor since October 2023 has been Russia's largest bank, VTB, but in 2023, its head, Andrei Kostin, stated that the bank is unlikely to engage in new investments and only supervises current expenditures.
To note, MSTP is Russia's only ice-free and deep-water port on the Caspian Sea, and it accepts vessels up to 150 meters long with a draft of up to 4.5 meters.
The port includes complexes for transshipment of dry cargo (3 million tons per year), light and dark oil products (7.9 million tons), berths for general bulk cargo and containers (1.2 million tons), railway and car ferry terminals (1.3 million tons), and a grain terminal (0.5 million tons).
MSTP increased cargo transshipment by 5.9 percent to 2.939
million tons in 2023 compared to 2022.
The port's deputy general director, Hadji-Murad Abashilov, informed
Russian media in March that it planned to increase cargo
transshipment at the port by 5–10 percent in 2024 through the
transshipment of grain and construction materials.
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