The Ukrainian Seaports Authority (USPA) and the Beltopenergo company have signed a memorandum on restoration of river navigation between Ukraine and Belarus, the CFTS portal reports.

The document provides for construction of a river port in Nizhniye Zhary (Gomel region of Belarus) by Belarus.

In particular, Beltopenergo will provide its Ukrainian partners with information about construction of the port and consider the possibility of Belarusian suppliers providing the cargo flows necessary for recoupment of the cost of the dredging operation.

“The USPA will consider the possibility of dredging the navigable waterways in River Dnipro. The Belarusian side will provide us with information about planned transshipment volumes and the parameters of vessels that are being processed. Based on this, we will analyze the cost effectiveness of dredging the channel to the guaranteed depth,” the USPA’s deputy head Dmytro Romenskyi said.

According to the document, implementation of the project will facilitate implementation of the roadmap for improvement of navigation on the Dnipro and Pripyat rivers, which is part of the project to restore the E-40 international waterway, as well as implementation of the Ukrainian-Belarusian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation’s decisions.

Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Viktor Dovhan recently said in comments to the CFTS portal that Belarusian officials have not yet decided on the period of implementation and the exact date of completion of the construction of a river port in Nizhniye Zhary, which is located on the border with Ukraine. However, the Turkish contractor Derin Shipping & Trading has already expressed interest in building the port.