VR resumes Finland-Russia freight traffic

National railway operator VR on Wednesday resumed its Transpoint's eastern freight traffic, which remained suspended since 27 March, said VR in a press release.

The Allegro service between Finland and Russia, however, will remain suspended until further notice.

The freight decision will not impact Allegro's operations, which was suspended on 28 March,.

Earlier, the VR authority suspended Transpoint's eastern freight traffic following the sanctions imposed by the United Kingdom against Russian Railways (RZD).

However, according to the clarification VR received from the UK authorities, these sanctions do not apply to the VR Group's contracts.

"Since the decision last week, we have continued to discuss with the UK authorities and banks how binding the sanctions are for our company. The specific interpretation of the British authorities and banks is that the sanctions do not apply to our operations. Therefore, we can continue with the important railway export, import and transit traffic while keeping the Finnish export industry running. Sanctions are often imposed on persons and, through that, on consigners or owners of goods, and we will not transport anything that falls under the sanctions. Possible sanctions and additional restrictions are decided by the authorities and we always act according to their instructions,” said Lauri Sipponen, President and CEO of VR Group in a statement.

VR Transpoint's services are focused on the export industry's product and raw material transports.

VR Transpoint's railway transport volume in 2021 was approximately 37 million tonnes. Freight between Finland and Russia is about a third of the total number of tonnes.