Belarus is interested in restoration of the E-40 waterway, which connects the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. With the help of this waterway, Belarus plans to attract transit cargo by river. Yuri Kolesov, an advisor to the Embassy of Belarus in Ukraine, announced this at a roundtable that took place at the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine on 21 March.
"Up to 20 million tons of cargo passed through this route per year until 1991, including container cargoes. Preliminary calculations have shown that there is an economic component in delivery of container goods from Southeast Asia to Europe. That is, we see this route as one of the routes for transit of goods to Europe from Asia and vice versa," Kolesov said.
According to the Belarusian representative, implementation of the project has already begun. The European Union provided the money for its implementation within the framework of the Eastern Partnership program.
"Currently, a project to develop the E-40 waterway (Baltic Sea-Black Sea) is being implemented in cross-border cooperation between Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine within the framework of the Eastern Partnership program. The first tranche of funds for performance of the feasibility study is currently being spent," said the adviser to the Embassy of Belarus in Ukraine.
As reported, a four-country international consortium for restoration of the waterway between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea was created in January 2015. It includes Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, and Germany.
The Polish government recently announced large-scale investments in river navigation. Warsaw plans to restore the Polish segment of three international waterways, including the E-40 waterway.
