SINOKOR suspends service on Vostochny route

SINOKOR suspends service on Vostochny route

South Korean feeder operator SINOKOR has decided to suspend container shipping services to Russia's Vostochny Port because the port's terminal operator was included in the new round of U.S. sanctions against Russia.

It is understood that SINOKOR Shipping’s decision is expected to have a certain impact on SINOKOR Shipping’s China-Russia route and other routes, including the recently opened route connecting Okgye Port in South Korea and Vostochny Port in Russia.

Data show that SINOKOR was founded in 1989 and is currently the 19th container liner company in the world in terms of shipping capacity. It has 81 container ships with a total capacity of 123,306 TEU, and 8 containers under construction with a total capacity of 43,128 TEU.

Route data from the official website of SINOKOR Shipping shows that the company currently has four routes: GRS, PVS4, QRS, and SRS, calling at the VSC Terminal of Vostochny Port in Russia.

The order of port calls for GRS routes is Dongfang Port, Yantian Port, Nansha Port, Xiamen Port, Shanghai Port and Busan Port;

The port order of the PVS4 route is Busan Port, Vladivostok Port and Vostochny Port;

The port order of the QRS route is Tianjin New Port, Rizhao Port, Qingdao Port, Busan Port, Vostochny Port, and Vladivostok Port;

The order of port calls for the SRS route is Ningbo Port, Shanghai Port, Busan Port, Vladivostok Port, Vostochny Port, and Busan Port.

Terminal operator Vostochnaya Stevedoring Company LLC (VSC) operates four berths at Vostochnaya Port and was one of 500 individuals and entities included on the U.S. Treasury Department’s sanctions list on February 22, the second anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

VSC is part of the Russian Global Ports Group and handles containerized cargo in the Russian Far East and Baltic Sea region.

A spokesman for SINOKOR Shipping confirmed the news and said: "We have currently suspended services to Oriental Port. If ships continue to dock at Oriental Port Terminal, the company may be sanctioned. At the same time, we will stop receiving cargo to and from Oriental Port. Book cargo space.”

SINOKOR Marine is one of the few shipping companies that has refused to dock in Russia following the sanctions. Although several new shipping lines have launched services to fill the route void left by the withdrawal of mainline operators, SINOKOR Line has decided to comply with the sanctions.

The company spokesman also said that SINOKOR Ship will continue to ship to vladivostok, another port in the Russian Far East, because the port has not yet been affected by sanctions.

On February 23, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued an announcement announcing the imposition of sanctions on a number of Russian financial institutions, container companies, and terminal companies, including the terminal of VOSTOCHNY PORT, the largest port in the Russian Far East. The operator Vostochnaya Stevedoring Company LLC （VSC）is also on the sanctions list.

VSC is part of the Russian Global Ports Group, handles container cargo in the Russian Far East and the Baltic Sea, and operates four berths at Vostochny Port.

The specific list is as follows:

(1)PJSC Transcontainer;

(2)Publichnoe Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Mechel;

(3)JSC SUEK;

(4)ILLC Geopromining Investment;

(5)LLC Holding GPM;

(6)Joint Stock Company Samara Metallurgical Plant;

(7)Joint Stock Company Rimera;

(8)Public Joint Stock Company Pipe Metallurgical Company;

(9)Vostochnaya Stevedoring Company LLC;

(10)JSC Rosgeologia;

(11)National Payment Card System Joint Stock Company;

(12)Limited Liability Company BSF Capital;

(13)Limited Liability Company Investment Consultant Elbrus Capital;

(14)Limited Liability Company Orbita Capital Partners;

(15)Nonprofit Organization Investment and Venture Fund of the Republic of Tatarstan;

(16)Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Guard Kapital;

(17)Limited Liability Company Shipbuilding Complex Zvezda;

(18)Joint Stock Company Sovcomflot;

(19)Any entity in which one or more of the above persons own, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, a 50 percent or greater interest.

The U.S. Treasury Department claims that North Korea uses Vostochny Port as its main entry and exit port to provide ammunition and other assistance in support of Russia.

OFAC also issued a general license, authorizing relevant transactions involving these entities to continue under certain conditions and/or during the grace period (before 12:01 noon Eastern Coast Daylight Time on April 8, 2024).

Under the sanctions of the United States, it is becoming more and more difficult to transport goods to Russia, but China is still the most important country exporting to Russia. We can still transport goods in China by air, sea, railway, truck and multimodal transport. Safe delivery to Russia

If you have any question about shipping to Russia please feel free to consult Viputrans  Lora Yang E-mail: sales02@viputrans.com

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