Water transport plays an important role in the economic relations of Tatarstan. For many regions of the republic, the Kama and Volga rivers are the main routes of communication.
According to statistics, the Kama River ranks first among the rivers of the republic in terms of cargo transportation. Oil, timber, bread, chemical products, building materials and salt are transported along the Kama, all the necessary materials and equipment are delivered for the cities of the Kama region: Nizhnekamsk, Naberezhnye Chelny, Elabuga, Mendeleevsk. Finished products - trucks, diesel engines, car tires, petrochemical products, as well as mineral fertilizers, agricultural products - are exported on ships along the Kama River.
The Volga is the main waterway of Tatarstan. It ranks first in terms of passenger and tourist traffic and in terms of saturation with vessels of various types. All kinds of cars, raw materials for industry and enterprises, oil and oil products, bread and confectionery products, construction materials and other various cargoes are transported along the Volga.
A significant role in the transportation of various goods is played by waterways along the Belaya (mainly oil is transported) and Vyatka (timber and grain) rivers.
After the construction of the Volga and Nizhnekamsk hydroelectric power plants and reservoirs, the transportation of goods, passengers and tourists along the Volga, Kama and their large tributaries increased significantly. The lower reaches of the Kazanka, Sviyaga and Ika rivers became navigable. Kazan, Chistopol, Naberezhnye Chelny and Nizhnekamsk became large port cities.
A large river port has been built in the city of Naberezhnye Chelny. The construction of a river port in Nizhnekamsk has been completed. In 1990-1995, crisis phenomena were observed in the river transport of the republic, which was reflected in freight traffic and passenger traffic: the volume of freight and passenger traffic decreased significantly.
