Sovcomflot

History

In 1973, the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union issued a resolution the formation of a special shipping corporation, separated from the regular state-owned marine fleet, that could use a long-term bareboat charter scheme for purchasing new and used foreign-built vessels. In 1976, the Ministry of Merchant Marine instituted a special fund and the newly formed corporation used it to acquire two 40,000 DWT, dry cargo transports – Sovfracht and Sovinflot.

In 1988 these operations were reorganized as the Sovcomflot Joint-Stock Company (SCF), a then one-of-a-kind state-owned corporation with special authorization by the USSR Council of Ministers. By 1990 its assets reached a gross tonnage carrying capacity of 1,800,000 DWT. A further reorganization in June 1995 confirmed the special status of Sovcomflot as a state-owned business.

In June 2007, President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a decree authorizing the merger of Sovcomflot and Novoship; the state 'invested' its 50.34% share in Novoship in Sovcomflot capital. The legal procedures were completed in early 2008 and in January 2008 Sovcomflot offered a stock buyout to the remaining minority shareholders of Novoship. The integration of Novoship assets into Sovcomflot operations continues as of August 2008 (fleet management and sales were unified in July 2008).

In August 2017, the Christophe de Margerie, a tanker owned by Sovcomflot, became the first cargo ship to complete the so-called Northern Sea Route, completing a journey from Hammerfest in Norway to Boryeong in South Korea in the record time of 22 days.