"All port operations are proceeding in a normal regime," the spokeswoman said. She declined further comment.
The state monopoly Russian Railways said it had suspended grain shipments to the country's main deep sea port of Novorossiisk from Nov. 15 to Nov. 19 to clear out overflowing port silos at one of the port's two terminals, NZT.
Igor Andreyev, CEO of NZT, said in a statement on the port's web site www.ntmp.ru that the port had had to restrict loading of ships due to stormy weather at the port in the beginning of November.
"In November and in the whole of the autumn period storms regularly interrupt the loading of ships, which is a normal situation and does not affect the terminal's overall operations," Andreyev said.
He said that the port's silos were 65 percent full and the port was loading a 63,000-ton vessel with grain destined for Egypt.
The owner of the second Novorossiisk grain terminal, the state grain trader United Grain Co, could not immediately be reached for comment.
The terminal has a storage capacity of 120,900 tons of grain an is capable of loading a Panamax vessel in 72 hours. (Reuters)
