Russia is a unique country. It is surrounded by twelve seas and three oceans. This suggests that the country has a well-developed fleet. Transportation of goods by sea has the lowest price, which is important for the economy of any country. Non-freezing ports play a special role here. There are not many of them in Russia. These ports include harbors, ice wiring for which is carried out less than two months a year.
Murmansk
This is the largest harbor in the world, located beyond the Arctic Circle. It is located on the shores of the Barents Sea, on the Kola Peninsula. The port in Murmansk is covered with ice only in the most severe winters; at such moments, vessels are carried out with the help of icebreakers and tugboats.
The large depth of access routes allows any vessels to enter the port. There are 16 cargo berths and 5 auxiliary, which stretch for 3.4 kilometers. Almost all of them have rail tracks.
Kaliningrad
This Baltic ice-free port of Russia has a very convenient location. Around it there are many European capitals: Stockholm, Vilnius, Copenhagen, Warsaw, Berlin and others. The port was built on the Kaliningrad Sea Canal, which is an artificial reservoir, as well as at the mouth of the Pregol River. The length of the berths is 17 kilometers. Only vessels with a size not exceeding 200 meters and a draft of not more than 8 meters can enter the port.
Novorossiysk
This ice-free port is considered the largest in the Krasnodar Territory. Its length is 8 kilometers, and the number of berths is considered the largest among all ports in Russia. It is located in the Tsemess Bay of the Black Sea. The port allows vessels with a draft of 12.5 meters and a carrying capacity of up to 250 thousand tons. The work of the Novorossiysk port stops only during the arrival of the Nord-Ost wind, it is considered dangerous for ships. This usually happens in the winter.
Tuapse
This port is considered the second most important after Novorossiysk in the Krasnodar Territory. Ships with a draft of up to 12 meters and a length of up to 250 meters can pass here. The port works with dangerous goods of various categories. In total there are 7 berths.
Yeisk
This ice-free port is located on the coast of the Taganrog Bay, which belongs to the Sea of Azov. This is the third most important port in the Krasnodar Territory. Passage of vessels with a draft of up to 4 meters and a length of up to 142 meters is allowed here.
Makhachkala
This harbor is considered the largest in the Caspian Sea. The port is whiter than 2 kilometers, and the number of berths reaches 20. Passage of vessels with a draft of up to 6.5 meters and a length of up to 150 meters is allowed here.
Oriental
This port is located in Wrangel Bay and is washed by the waters of Nakhodka Bay. It belongs to the large trading harbors of Russia, located in the Pacific. The port is connected to the country via the Trans-Siberian Railway. On its territory there are 25 berths and 8 terminals. It accepts vessels with a draft of up to 13 meters and a length of up to 290 meters.
Find
It is the largest ice-free port on the coast of the Sea of Japan. Over a year, more than 18 million tons of cargo are handled here. Over 16 kilometers, there are 108 berths. Ships with a length of up to 245 meters and a draft of up to 11.5 meters can enter this area.
Zarubino
This port of Primorsky Krai is located in Trinity Bay. Not far from it are the ports of China and the DPRK. The length of the harbor is about one kilometer and has 7 berths. Ships with a draft of up to 7 meters and a length of not more than 130 meters are accepted here.
Nevelsk
Another non-freezing port of Russia, which is located on the coast of Sakhalin Island. The harbor has 26 berths and stretches for a distance of 2.7 kilometers. It accepts vessels with draft up to 5.5 and length up to 120 meters.
Posyet
The harbor is located just south of Vladivostok in Posyet Bay, which belongs to the Sea of Japan. The port territory is 2.4 kilometers long and has 16 berths. Ships with a draft of up to 9 meters and a length of no more than 183 meters are accepted here.
Kholmsk
The port is located on Sakhalin Island on the coast of the Tatar Gulf, in the waters of the Sea of Japan. The harbor is 2.5 kilometers long, with 27 moorings. Ships with a draft of up to 8 meters and a length of up to 130 meters can enter here.
Are there still ice-free seaports?
All ports located in the southern harbors of Russia are also non-freezing. These are the ports of Sochi, Anapa, Gelendzhik, Taman, the port of Temryuk and the port of Caucasus. And after the annexation of Crimea to the territory of the Russian Federation, the harbors of Sevastopol, Yevpatoriya and Kerch can be attributed here.