With favourable weather conditions, on request from shipping companies and on approval from the Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport, the 72nd navigation season started in the Volga-Don Shipping Canal on March 27, five days ahead of schedule.
The navigation season in the Azov and Don inland waterways basin started on the same date, also ahead of schedule, for the same reasons.
The first vessel to start navigation in the Volga-Don Canal was the m/v “Omsky-206” that passed the first sluice heading from Astrakhan to Rostov-na-Donu in ballast.
According to the information provided by shipping companies, cargo traffic in the Azov and Don inland waterways basin is forecasted to exceed 9 mn tons during navigation 2023.