Container operators ask to regulate cargo flow to the east

Container operators of the Moscow transport hub proposed to introduce a procedure for distributing limits between them for the transportation of container trains to the east, similar to what works for coal miners in Kuzbass. After the change of the rules for the hub by Russian Railways, requests for transportation are tied to the processing capacity of container terminals in the Moscow region, which is not always in the interests of those players who have only rolling stock. The new order divides the quota between them in half. Market participants confirm the relevance of the mechanism. But experts note that even the new methodology leaves the terminals with too much room for speculation at the expense of transportation efficiency.

“Kommersant” got acquainted with the draft government decree, sent at the end of July to the FAS by Denis Ilatovsky, Senior Vice President for Operations and Cooperation with Government Agencies of Delo Management Company. The document provides for amendments to the rules of non-discriminatory access (NAP) to the railway infrastructure and introduces a methodology for distributing quotas between operators for sending container trains from the Moscow Transport Hub (MTU) to the Far East, by analogy with what is in effect for shippers of coal for export in the east from Kuzbass.

Container shipping, explains a source familiar with the proposed methodology, have their own characteristics in the coordination. So, if for ordinary cargo there is only form GU-12 (an application for the transportation of goods is submitted by the consignor), then container trains are additionally coordinated in accordance with the system of work orders submitted by operators. This system is enshrined in federal legislation in part GU-12 and in the regulations of the Ministry of Transport and Russian Railways for work orders.

From February-March, Russian Railways began an experiment by changing the coordination system for container trains departing from MTU to the Far East, says the interlocutor of Kommersant.

Approval of the application was made dependent on the processing capacity of MTU container terminals.

As a result, transportation quotas were concentrated with the owners of the largest Moscow terminals, such as Khovrino, Elektrougli, and so on, and the availability of platforms and container train operators ceased to play a significant role. Another interlocutor of Kommersant says that the terminals had a large amount of quotas at their disposal, exceeding the availability of trains, and they “resell them to operators with platforms.”

The methodology for distributing capacities between shippers now exists only for one category of cargo – export coal shipped east from Kuzbass. The reason for its appearance was the growth of competition “to a level that requires fixing the procedure for distributing capacities by government acts,” says a Kommersant source in the market. Now, he adds, the same scale of competition has developed in the field of container shipments from Moscow’s terminals. He emphasizes that after the adoption of the methodology for coal miners in Kuzbass, applications to the FAS for quotas almost disappeared.

The proposed method, Mr. Ilatovsky explained to Kommersant, is a compromise between the old and the new order: half of the MTU quota is distributed among container train operators, and half between terminals, which then must agree on the terms of interaction.

“Thus, the market nature of interaction and equal access to railway transport services will be ensured,” he believes.

Kommersant’s interlocutor in the industry emphasizes that the proposed changes apply only to the container queue from MTU to the Far East, that is, they do not affect other cargo traffic at the Eastern range. In his opinion, if adopted, the mechanism can, if necessary, be extended to other regions of dispatch, but there the ratio may be different due to regional specifics, the presence of large shippers of container (for example, timber) cargo.

JSC Russian Railways “Kommersant” reported that they were participating in the discussions of the draft document. The FESCO group supports the initiative. “It will make it possible to establish transparent rules on the railway for all participants in the transportation,” the group says. “As for specific provisions, we agree with the introduction of “carry or pay” agreements, but subject to the establishment of mutual responsibility of railway operators and Russian Railways. We also support the initiative to approve the plan for the transportation of containers as part of container trains in the east direction equally between container terminals and operators.”

In the ESP (unites the largest container operators), Kommersant confirmed that they are part of the IPA updating group. “Given the active growth of the container segment, the demand for scarce destinations is high,” they say.

In the context of a shortage of the eastern direction, they add to the CAP, proposals from market participants are being discussed on the method of intra-group distribution, which should maximize the amount of exported cargo in containers.

“The discussion is likely to continue at the level of the government of the Russian Federation,” they believe.

Mikhail Burmistrov, head of Infoline-Analytics, notes that the number of network bottlenecks has increased and will continue to grow, and therefore it is important to regulate highly routed transportation segments as container ones in order to “facilitate their unbundling, and not form conflicts of interest between market participants.” However, he believes, the proposed methodology contains the risk associated with the transfer of the quota to the terminals: “They do not stimulate an increase in the efficiency of using their capacities for all customers, but encourage them to independently form container trains or operate with a quota.”

According to Mr. Burmistrov, it is necessary to take into account the situation at the terminals, but “it is inappropriate to motivate them to work exclusively with their own routes and, using the quota, receive additional margin on container trains, which were formed by other market participants.”

Natalya Skorlygina