October 19, 2009

Russia must spend at least RUB100 billion (US$3.4 billion) on building and improving grain silos and ports to meet a government goal of boosting grain exports, according to ZAO Rusagrotrans, the country's largest railway grain forwarding operator.

Russia needs another 18 million tonnes of capacity to store grain and a further 17 million tonnes at ports to meet the target, said Rusagrotrans.

Russia also needs to build two grain export terminals in the south with an annual capacity of 12 million tonnes, and a five million-tonne terminal in its Far East, said the company.

Russia aims to boost its annual grain exports to between 40 million and 50 million tonnes in the next 10 to 15 years, said Agriculture Minister Yelena Skrynnik in June.