EU acknowledges strategic significance of Baku International Sea Trade Port in Middle Corridor

Baku International Sea Trade Port (BISTP) has strategic importance in the global interconnectedness of Europe and Asia along the Middle Corridor, BISTP said following a meeting between the port's Director-General Taleh Ziyadov and EU Special Representative for Central Asia Terhi Hakala, Azernews reports.

Hakala visited BISTP in Alat as part of her visit to Azerbaijan.

"BISTP plays an important role in strengthening regional sustainable economic development and in the global connectivity of Europe and Asia along the Middle Corridor," Ziyadov and Hakala noted after the meeting.

Since 2016, BISTP has been engaged in business collaboration with the EU, undertaking various joint initiatives as part of the green port agenda. These endeavours focus on digitalization and enhancing port efficiency.

"At the meeting with the EU representative, talks centred around sustainable development and public-private partnership (PPP) endeavours. The aim was to ensure the port's effective implementation of the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) strategy, with the target of achieving net zero emissions by 2035," the statement reads.

The port's current transshipment capacity stands at 15 million tons of cargo per year (receiving 100,000 20-foot containers), although work is underway to increase it to 25 million tons per year.