The Port of Mariupol or Mariupol Sea Port () is located in
Mariupol
Mariupol is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius, Kalmius River. Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was the tenth-largest city in the coun ...
, Ukraine in the
Taganrog Bay
Taganrog Bay (; ) is the northeastern arm of the Sea of Azov. It also may be perceived as a flooded estuary of the Don River.
Geography
The bay serves as a natural boundary between the Kuban coast line in Russia and the northern Azov littor ...
,
Sea of Azov
The Sea of Azov is an inland Continental shelf#Shelf seas, shelf sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, and sometimes regarded as a northern extension of the Black Sea. The sea is bounded by Ru ...
. The port is governed by the port authority managed by
Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority
The Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority ( USPA, ) is a state company created in 2013 after the adoption of the law "On Sea Ports of Ukraine" and united all ports of Ukraine under one administration. Total throughput of 13 seaports in 2019 exceeded 160 ...
. As of June 2022, it is occupied by Russian armed forces.
The berthing line of the seaport is 3.9 km (22 berths), with depths down to 9.75 meters. The port is served by one port railway station "Mariupol-Port." The total length of the railways of the port is 27,1 km. Highways are adjacent to the port.
The cargo turnover of Mariupol seaport in 2016 amounted to 7.6 million tons, the capacity of Mariupol seaport reaches 18.8 million tons per year.
The port has the largest repair facility of its class on the Sea of Azov.
History
The birth of the port of Mariupol was a logical continuation of rapid development of the industrial
Russian South in the second half of 19th century. The shallow wharf in the mouth of the
Kalmius River did not meet the development requirements of the fleet along with those of the mining and metallurgical industry of
Donets basin
The Seversky Donets () or Siverskyi Donets (), usually simply called the Donets (), is a river on the south of the East European Plain. It originates in the Central Russian Upland, north of Belgorod, flows south-east through Ukraine (Kharkiv ...
(Donbas).
In 1886 construction began for a
deepwater port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...
in
Mariupol
Mariupol is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius, Kalmius River. Prior to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was the tenth-largest city in the coun ...
, near Zintseva balka (locality).
The construction was planned for five years, but was finished in three under pressure from industrialists.
On , 18 railcars carrying coal (about 2,000
pood
''Pood'' ( rus, пуд, r=pud, p=put, plural: or ) is a unit of mass equal to 40 Funt (mass), ''funt'' (, Russian pound). Since 1899 it is set to approximately 16.38 kilograms (36.11 pound (mass), pounds). It was used in Russia, Belarus, and Ukr ...
s) were brought on the port's embankment.
After a prayer in the presence of the Russian Minister of Railways and the Mariupol city governor Kharazhaev, there began the first loading onto a steamship of the Russian Society of Shipping and Trade "Medveditsa", which on left for its destination.
This date is considered the start date of the port's operation. The port had huge significance for the development of industry in the region and the
whole country. In the period 1867–1904, the Port of Mariupol was third in Russia among non-military ports by volume of assignments.
During the
Russian Invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, Russian forces took and occupied Mariupol.
On 26 May 2022, following closure during the
Siege of Mariupol
The siege of Mariupol began on 24 February 2022 and lasted until 20 May, as part of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It saw fighting between the Russian Armed Forces (alongside the Donetsk People's Republic People's Militia) and the Ukrainian ...
, Russia reopened the port to commercial vessels following
naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...
removal.
TASS
The Russian News Agency TASS, or simply TASS, is a Russian state-owned news agency founded in 1904. It is the largest Russian news agency and one of the largest news agencies worldwide.
TASS is registered as a Federal State Unitary Enterpri ...
stated that the port was operating at full capacity by July 2022. The first
bulk carrier
A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially naval architecture, designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo—such as Grain trade, grain, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement—in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrie ...
, carrying grain, was reportedly loaded by the
Donetsk People's Republic
The Donetsk People's Republic (DPR; , ) is Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupied territory in Ukraine that the Russian Federation has claimed to annex and declared as a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia, comprising parts o ...
in 2023 to be exported. In June 2024, the city's exiled mayor,
Vadym Boychenko
Vadym Serhiyovych Boychenko (; born 5 June 1977) is a Ukrainian politician who serves as the de jure mayor of Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine since 2015. Boychenko served as mayor during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and Siege of ...
, said that a Russian tanker had entered the port for the first time since its capture, and that it was being used for military use.
Gallery
File:Фото к статье «Мариупольский порт». Военная энциклопедия Сытина (Санкт-Петербург, 1911-1915).jpg, Photo to the article "Mariupol port" from Sytin's Military Encyclopedia (St. Petersburg, 1911–1915).
File:Маріупольський морський вокзал.JPG, Seaport terminal in 2010.
File:Порт Маріуполь.jpg, Port of Mariupol, January 2020.
See also
*
List of ports in Ukraine
Ukraine possesses the greatest sea port potential among all the countries of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. There are 18 seaports located along the Ukrainian coast.
Sea ports
All the ports of Ukraine are managed by the Ukrainian Sea Ports A ...
*
Transport in Ukraine
Transport in Ukraine includes ground transportation (road and rail), water (sea and river), air transportation, and pipelines. The transportation sector accounts for roughly 11% of the country's gross domestic product and 7% of total employment.
...
References
External links
Port of Mariupol AuthorityOfficial website of State Stevedore Port Operatorat the
Ministry of Infrastructure
Port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...
Port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...
Ports and harbours of Ukraine
1889 establishments in Ukraine
Ports and harbours of the Sea of Azov
Ukrainian brands
Water transport in Ukraine
Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority
{{Ukraine-hist-stub