February 10, 2010 [Bunkerworld] - Fuel oil exports from the Rosbunker terminal in Baltiysk in Russia's Kaliningrad enclave on the Baltic coast have been blocked by customs authorities, according to reports.
The ban on exports follows confusion over where the port’s boundaries run. Sources quoted by the Russian news service PortNews said the terminal had lost over $1.5 million in business since the end of December.
The block on exports follows an order, issued late last year, by the Kaliningrad region’s border authorities. They were acting on what reports said was an “inaccurate definition” of Kaliningrad’s port boundaries. The boundaries had been reviewed in October on instructions from the Russian government. “The terminal water area was not included in the defined boundaries. As a result, the ships calling at the port could not pass through Kaliningrad Regional Customs clearance. All handling operations were canceled,” said PortNews. It said 600 rail cars carrying fuel oil from Kazakhstan were waiting to unload. Another 14,000 metric tonnes (mt) of product were held in storage tanks.
