Azerbaijan cuts marine transportation fares
By Nigar Orujova
Azerbaijan, the country popularizing its transportation possibilities, cuts off tariffs for transportation across the Caspian Sea.
The Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company has cut the tariffs by 20 percent to raise attractiveness of the sea route of transporting cars heading from Turkey to Kazakhstan, the company reported.
The tariffs have been reduced on transportation route from Azerbaijan to Kazakhstan via the Caspian Sea.
The new fare is set at $1,200 per articulated lorry in one direction (Baku-Aktau and Aktau-Baku). The return ticket fare is set in the amount of $2,100.
The vehicles are transported from/to the Baku International Sea and Trade Port in Alyat settlement of Baku, Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan located on the edge of the East and West has put stake on the transportation for about 10 years ago and now reaps the benefits.
Azerbaijan plays a leading role, not only in large-scale projects focused on the transportation of oil and gas, but in goods transportation as well, being a major part of the global corridor from China to Europe.
Today, the country wants to use its strategically favorable location to become a country conducive for goods transit by following the ‘one contact’ principle.
Moreover, the country plans to optimize tariffs for transit cargo by rail and sea transport, freight forwarding services, as well as services provided at seaports.
In addition, the period for cargo transit will be reduced, procedures simplified and transparency of rules and procedures for cargo transportation will be ensured.
Experts believe that the realization of such a global project will contribute to the diversification of the economy, reduced dependence on the oil sector, and will also help the private sector, thus strengthening the country’s role in the region.
Azerbaijan is also a member at the Trans-Caspian international transport route that runs through China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, to reach Europe. The route enjoys the opportunity to become attractive and profitable for consignors from European countries.
It is expected that approximately 300,000-400,000 containers will be transported via the Trans-Caspian international transport route by 2020, bringing hundreds of millions of manats in profit to Azerbaijan.
In addition, Azerbaijan is ready to use its location to provide transit of the Turkish goods to the countries of Central Asia, as Russia banned entrance of trucks from Turkey.
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Nigar Orujova is AzerNews’s staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @o_nigar
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