Russia forming new development opportunities - Putin

MURMANSK. March 28 (Interfax) - Russia is strengthening its independence today and is forming new opportunities for economic development, President Vladimir Putin said at the ceremony launching the first loading of the Lavna coal terminal in the Murmansk region.

"Russia is strengthening its sovereignty today, is creating new points of growth for its economy and trade, and is building effective transport corridors. The Northern Sea Route is developing actively as well," Putin said.

In December 2023, traffic was launched on a new rail line from the Vykhodnoi station to the Lavna terminal, which was under construction at the time, he said.

"Today, we are taking the next step in the development of the Murmansk transport hub. We are inaugurating the first shipment of coal from the new Lavna transshipment center. I'd like to thank all specialists who helped accomplish this important project for the enormous amount of work they did, constructors who built the approach roads and the terminal, engineers, designers, railway engineers, and specialists of a large number of professions. Together, we did this difficult, large-scale work, and we did it in challenging climatic conditions," Putin said.

It is crucial that modern technologies that lower the burden on the environment were used during the coal terminal's construction, and it is also important in terms of safeguarding the unique nature of the Arctic, he said.

"The launch of the terminal will become a good contribution to increasing the throughput capacity of our Arctic ports, to the creation of additional opportunities for the coal mining industry," Putin said.