BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 27. Iran’s non-oil exports to Azerbaijan via Astara railway terminal in Gilan Province increased by 7.4 percent in volume for the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 21 through December 21, 2023), Director General of Iran's Northern Railway Department Gholam Hossein Valadi said, Trend reports.
According to him, Iran exported more than 136,000 tons of non-oil goods to Azerbaijan in the specified period.
In the corresponding period of the previous Iranian year, Iran’s non-exports to Azerbaijan stood at around 127,000 tons, Valadi said.
The director general also stated that the export items were citrus fruits, cement, chemicals, salt, etc.
The Astara railway terminal is located in Iran’s Astara city on an area of 35 hectares, 1.4 km from the Azerbaijan-Iran border.
According to the intergovernmental agreement between Azerbaijan and Iran, the construction of the terminal began in 2017. The Astara railway terminal, built by Azerbaijan Railways, has been leased to Azerbaijan for 25 years.
Despite the ongoing construction, several parts of the terminal have already been ready for operation, and from the beginning of 2018, transshipment operations have been carried out there.
Iran exported a total of 313,000 tons of non-oil products worth approximately 181 million to Azerbaijan during the first five months of the current Iranian year (March 21 through August 22, 2023).
Iran’s exports to Azerbaijan for the reporting period decreased by 38.9 percent in value, while increasing by 1.67 percent in volume compared to the same period last year.
Overall, Iran exported 102 million tons of non-oil products worth over $36.4 billion in the first half of the current Iranian year (March 21 through August 22, 2023). This is an decrease of 0.68 percent in value and an increase of 26.5 percent in volume compared to the same period last year.
