Ventspils

Ventspils is the sixth largest city of Latvia. Latvia is located in the eastern part of Europe by the Baltic Sea. Latvia borders on Estonia to the north, Russian Federation to the east, Belarus to the south-east, and Lithuania to the south. The territory of Latvia occupies 64.6 thousand km². There are more than 2.5 million inhabitants in Latvia, 55 % of whom are Latvians. The capital of Latvia is Riga.

Ventspils is located in the north-west of Latvia at the estuary of the river Venta into the Baltic Sea. A distance of 189 km separates Ventspils from the capital of Latvia.

The Ventspils of today is undoubtedly a city of European level and a world class port. Ventspils Free Port is the largest port in Latvia and the leading one among the ports of the Baltic Sea Region. Ventspils Free Port is the most important transportation centre in the country and a significant component of the east-west transit route.

Ventspils enjoys a moderate maritime climate with warmer spells in winter and cooler weather in summers. The average temperature during the year is + 6.6 C^o, the highest + 33.7 C^o, the lowest - 32.0 C^o. The maritime climate results in the port of Ventspils being ice-free all year round. The average precipitation is 700 mm per annum, the medium relative humidity of the air is 82 %. The warmest month of the year is July.

There are 43 779 residents in Ventspils (according to the October 1, 2000 data of the Citizenship and Immigration Board). Ventspils can boast of having one of the highest employment and medium salary rates in Latvia.

Ventspils is considered to have the most friendly business environment of any locality in the country. The number of the registered enterprises exceeds 2000 in Ventspils. Transport is the leading sphere of economy and the basis of economic and social development of the city. Most of the residents are employed by the enterprises related to the transshipment, storage and transit of cargoes, as well as by companies servicing Ventspils Free Port.

When a Latvian thinks of Ventspils he immediately thinks of three things: the port, the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, usually in that order. This is no coincidence, because it is the combination of these three elements which have led to the success, destruction and rebirth of this ancient city.

Already mentioned in historical documents as a port in 1263, Ventspils truly began to grow as a city after the Livonian Order erected a castle here at the end of the 13th century. Located at the mouth of the Venta River, Ventspils and its ice-free port became a strategic base for trade on the Baltic Sea.

Ventspils entered a brief Golden Age as the shipbuilding centre for Duke Jacob of Kurland’s fleet. It was from this small city in present day Western Latvia, that Duke Jacob launched his fleet into the Baltic Sea. These ships set sail for exotic destinations in the Carri-bean and West Africa where the duke possessed colonies.

Unfortunately, for the duke and for Ventspils, larger powers on the Baltic Sea were preparing to pluck this jewel for themselves. The Great Northern War decimated the city to the point that only seven families were left alive. The Grand Duchy of Kurland first fell to Sweden and was finally snatched by Russia in 1795.

Ventspils was reborn as Russia’s chief ice-free port at the beginning of the 20th century. It was also a prominent port during Latvia’s interwar period and also during the Soviet occupation.

Today, Ventspils is a free port and enjoys Latvia’s lowest rate of unemployment. The city’s wealth is evident in its renovated old town, castle and its pristine beaches. At the brink of a new millenium, Ventspils’ future seems bright.

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