Preparations for the Opening of Navigation on the Saimaan Canal
07.04.2016
In accordance with the agreement on the Saimaan canal between the Commissioners of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Finland, the opening of navigation on the Saimaan canal will be held on April 9, 2016 at 06:00 Moscow time.
On April 6, 2016 in order to ensure safety of navigation in the canal Kapitan Izmaylov icebreaker of the North-Western Basin Branch tested the open waters of Saimaan canal from the “Saimenskiy Peredniy” navigation light to Brusnichnoe gateway.
For reference:The Saimaan canal is a navigable canal between lake Saimaa in Finland and the Gulf of Finland. The total length of the canal with the sea fairway is 57.3 km long (34 km in Russia, 23.3 km in Finland), land section is 42.9 km long (19.6 km in Russia, 23.3 km in Finland), the marine fairway is 14.4 km long. The canal is navigable for river, lake and sea vessels. The navigation period on the Saimaan canal is determined annually by the commissioners for the Saimaan canal, depending on ice conditions. The average duration of the navigation season is 275 days (9 months). The Saimaan canal connects the largest and most navigable lake system of Finland the Gulf of Finland. The channel provides an opportunity of piloting ships from the ports of the inland waters of Eastern Finland to the ports of the European coast, as well as to the internal ports of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The main part of cargo traffic consists of timber, construction materials, fertilizers, pulp and paper, coal, and lumber.
