– We lost 70 percent of our turnover overnight. It’s not something you replace the next day, says Kimek director Greger Mannsverk. There is still little activity at the shipyard in Kirkenes after the sanctions against Russia came in 2022. Now Russian fishing vessels can only dock in Tromsø, Båtsfjord and Kirkenes. Unloading fish and carrying out emergency repairs are some of the few things that are not subject to sanctions. Since May last year, repairs to Russian fishing vessels are no longer allowed, and from 1 August the time of stay in the ports is limited to five working days. This has led to a drastic reduction in the number of calls and the average length of stay. PST believes that it reduces the possibility of conducting intelligence against Norway. Director of Kimek, Greger Mannsverk, has lost 70 percent of the turnover at the shipyard as a result of the sanctions against Russia. Photo: Gunnar Sætra / news Sharp decrease in calls and length of stay – Fewer calls and shorter length of stay reduce the room for maneuver they have, says the head of the Police Security Service (PST) in Finnmark, Johan Roaldsnes. He believes that the biggest threat is that civilian vessels are part of the Russian war planning. – It will then be a platform for Russian security and intelligence services for unwanted and illegal activity on Norwegian soil. The average length of stay per call from last year to this year has been reduced in all ports. In Kirkenes, it decreased by almost 75 per cent. The Norwegian Coastal Administration’s overview shows that the number of calls by Russian fishing vessels decreased by 40 per cent in Kirkenes from the first half of last year to the first half of this year. In Tromsø the reduction was 25 per cent, but the number of calls increased by seven per cent in Båtsfjord in the same period. – Have had to downsize Kirkenes and Sør-Varanger have been hit hard by the sanctions that came after Putin’s order for a full-scale invasion of Ukraine two and a half years ago. An analysis showed that Russian customers traded for approximately NOK 600 million in Sør-Varanger before February 2022. Today, this has been greatly reduced. Ship agent Arve Henriksen has also experienced this. – We have had to downsize. At our agent office in Kirkenes, 5 out of 13 have lost their jobs so far. The Russian fishing vessel “Kiev” unloads fish in Kirkenes. Photo: Gunnar Sætra / news – What future do you see for your company? – For Russian activity, I don’t think there is any way back. We must look for new activity, if there is any. It is difficult to adjust in the Barents Sea, almost everything is from Russian activity, but we have to try, says Henriksen. The Kimek shipyard has also noticed the sanctions and has 25 fewer employees than before. The yard has found new markets, but needs more customers. Kimek works to find new markets and more customers, but the yard still does not have enough work. Photo: Gunnar Sætra / news Now the yard produces large constructions for the oil industry, in addition to carrying out maintenance on an old dam hatch from a power plant. It is still not enough. – We produce too few hours for us to make money, so we have to open another division, we have to have more work. We are working hard on that, we will make it happen. I dare not say when it will be in place, concludes Mannsverk Publisert 22.08.2024, at 12.29
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PST believes that fewer Russian calls reduce intelligence towards Norway – news Troms and Finnmark
