Kazakhstan Railways offers opportunities on TITR for foreign ambassadors

Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ), a state enterprise, hosted a meeting with international diplomatic missions to discuss the construction of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR, or Middle Corridor), Azernews reports.

Over 30 foreign ambassadors, as well as representatives from the EBRD and the World Bank, were briefed on the Middle Corridor's benefits and opportunities, the route's development results, and prospects for international cooperation, as well as the results of Kazakhstan's railway industry in 2023.

The KTZ reports that container transit via Kazakhstan has increased 4.7 times in the last ten years. At the end of last year, the volume of transit traffic exceeded 27 million tons, which has historically been the company's strongest indicator.

At the same time, the volume of cargo moved through TITR nearly doubled in 2023 compared to 2022, reaching over 2.8 million tons. The expected volume for TITR in 2024 is 4 million tons. In the medium future, up to ten million tons.

Participants were also briefed about KTZ's active work to strengthen the "soft and hard infrastructure" of TITR in order to improve logistics services both within and outside of Kazakhstan.

Andrei Mikhnev, the World Bank's Country Manager for Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, spoke at the occasion and stated that the WB's report gave an examination of alternative solutions that will help triple the current volume of freight traffic on the TITR.

The Middle Corridor is a transportation and trade route that connects Asia and Europe, passing through several countries in the region. It is an alternative route to the traditional Northern Corridor and Southern Corridor.

The route starts in China and crosses Central Asian countries such as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. It then passes through the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye before reaching Europe.

The Middle Corridor offers a land route that connects the eastern parts of Asia, including China, with Europe, bypassing the longer maritime routes.