Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway commissioned
By Aynur Jafarova
The Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway is being solemnly commissioned on the Turkmen-Iranian border.
The inauguration is being held with the participation of the
presidents of the three countries, Nursultan Nazarbayev of
Kazakhstan, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov of Turkmenistan and Hassan
Rouhani of Iran, Trend Agency reported on December 3.
Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway is part of the North-South
international transport corridor. A project, called the
North-South, is being implemented on the basis of an agreement
signed in 2007. The construction of the railway started in
2009.
The length of the railway is 925 kilometers in total, with 85
kilometers in Iran's territory, 700 kilometers in Turkmenistan and
the remaining 140 kilometers in Kazakhstan.
Preliminary estimates show that annually 3-5 million metric tons of
cargo will be transported via this route. In the long term the
transportation will increase to 10-12 million metric tons.
There can also be a modal redistribution of transit goods: a shift
of freight from motor vehicles, sea or air transport to railway
transport.
The project is being implemented with an assistance of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB).
Through the Kazakhstan Turkmenistan-Iran railway, Iran has the ability to enter the Russian and Chinese markets and Kazakhstan to all of the Gulf States. This railway is expected to have a positive impact on the bringing of the regional trade and economic cooperation to a new level.