BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 7. Some 15 new ships have been purchased by Iran's private sector over the past several months, Iranian Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development and Head of the Iranian Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO), Ali Akbar Safaei said, Trend reports.
Safaei noted that in addition, a large number of ships were also purchased, which are gradually brought to the country through the Volga River.
The deputy minister said that Iran's trade turnover with Caspian countries has been increasing recently. Considering this, the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development of Iran is increasing the number of ships in the Caspian Sea.
“Along with all these, Iran's Iran Marine Industrial Company (also known as SADRA) has started building 4 new ships within the country,” he added.
According to the chairman, during the current Iranian government (which has been in power since August 2021), 180 trillion rials (about $4.29 billion) has been spent on the infrastructure of Iranian ports. Currently, 440 trillion rials (about $10.4 billion) is being spent on various port facilities.
Iran is taking various steps to increase cargo transportation with Russia through the Caspian Sea within the framework of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
The INSTC has 3 routes on Iran's territory. The eastern route is Turkmenistan and Central Asian countries, the middle route is Russia and other countries via the Caspian Sea, and the western route is Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia and Eastern European countries.
The foundation of the ‘International North-South Transport Corridor’ was laid on the basis of an intergovernmental agreement signed between Russia, Iran, and India on September 12, 2000. In total, 13 countries have ratified the agreement, including Azerbaijan, India, Iran, Russia, Türkiye, etc.
The purpose of creating a corridor is to reduce the delivery time of cargo from India to Russia, as well as to North and West Europe. Delivery time on the current route is more than 6 weeks, it is expected to be reduced to 3 weeks via North-South Transport Corridor.
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