BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 7. Iran has set a target to increase transit and cargo transportation through the eastern and western parts of the Caspian Sea to 35 million tons as part of the North-South international transport corridor, the country's Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Farzaneh Sadegh, said, Trend reports.
She made the remark at a panel discussion on transport infrastructure financing during the 3rd meeting of “Landlocked Developing Countries” held in Turkmenistan.
According to her, Iran plans to increase cargo transportation through the eastern part of the Caspian Sea, i.e., along the eastern route, to 20 million tons per year by 2028, and through the western part of the Caspian Sea, i.e., along the western route, to 15 million tons per year by 2028.
Sadegh noted that the implementation of these goals will lead to the strengthening of infrastructure in the region and the growth of transit and trade.
“The development of transport infrastructure in the North-South and East-West corridors is a priority of Iran's macroeconomic programs. Progress has been made in the implementation of such important projects as Shalamche-Basra, Chabahar-Sarak, Rasht-Astara, and Sarak-Cheshme-Soraya,” she noted.
The Iranian minister noted that Iran, which has 250,000 kilometers of roads, 15,000 kilometers of railways, 16 commercial ports, and 26 border terminals with a cargo transportation capacity of 300 million tons, is ready to share its capabilities with countries that do not have access to international waters and can play a constructive role in the implementation of the practical programs “Almaty,” “Vienna,” and “Awaza.”
The creation of the North-South transport corridor was based on an intergovernmental agreement between Russia, Iran, and India dated September 12, 2000. In total, this agreement was ratified by several countries (the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Bulgaria, India, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Sultanate of Oman, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Türkiye, and Ukraine). The purpose of creating the corridor is to reduce the delivery time of goods from India to Russia, as well as to Northern and Western Europe (the delivery time along the current route is more than 6 weeks, while the North-South route is expected to take 3 weeks).
On March 6, 2019, the Qazvin-Rasht railway (175 km) was put into operation as part of the corridor, connecting the Azerbaijani railways with the Iranian railway network. The Rasht-Astara railway is to be built on Iranian territory.
The North-South Corridor has three directions across Iranian territory. The eastern direction is Turkmenistan and the countries of Central Asia, the middle direction is Russia and other countries across the Caspian Sea, and the western direction is Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and the countries of Eastern Europe.
On May 17, 2023, Russia and Iran signed an agreement on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway in the province of Gilan in northern Iran. Nine stations will be built on the Resht-Astara railway line, which is approximately 163 km long. Upon completion of this railway, the North-South international corridor will be improved, and Iran's railway network will be connected to the Caucasus countries, Russia, and Northern Europe. According to the agreement, the Russian side is expected to allocate 1.6 billion euros for the construction of this railway. The construction and completion of the railway is planned to take 48 months.