Finnish VR Transpoint will return to the Russian market three days after leaving

Finnish state-owned freight forwarding company VR Transpoint will return to the Russian market from March 30, after the company had previously announced it would suspend operations in Russia due to international sanctions against Russian Railways. This was reported by the press service of VR Transpoint.

VR Transpoint said it continued consultations with British authorities and banks on the nature of the restrictive measures. “According to a more detailed explanation <...>, our activities are not subject to sanctions . In this way, we can continue important rail EXPORT, import and transit traffic while keeping the Finnish export industry up and running,” said Lauri Sipponen, CEO of VR Group.

Sipponen noted that sanctions are often directed against individuals, and therefore against shippers or owners of goods, VR Transpoint will not transport their goods. The company also added that the decision on the issue of cargo transportation will not affect the suspension of Allegro trains between Helsinki and St. Petersburg.

VR Transpoint's rail traffic volumes in 2021 amounted to about 37 million tons. Freight traffic between Finland and Russia accounts for about a third of the company's total traffic, according to the VR Transpoint website.