North-South ITC cargo traffic rose by 64.6% to 8.4 million tonnes in 2022
In Q1’2023, cargo traffic doubled with container transportation having increased 5-fold
Thanks to the implementation of a package of measures, cargo traffic in all directions of the int transport corridor “North-South” rose by 64.6% to 8.4 million tonnes in 2022, Deputy Transport Minister Valentin Ivanov said at the meeting with Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin , according to the Ministry’s press center.
The with members of the Government Commission on the Socioeconomic Development of the North Caucasus Federal District was particularly focused on the development of transport infrastructure in the region.
Among the key cargoes carried through the corridor were oil, grain, timber and ferrous metal. In Q1’2023, cargo traffic doubled with container transportation having increased 5-fold
According to Valentin Ivanov, activities planned for 2022-2025 will let increase the railway capacity to 15 million tonnes, 1.5 times more versus the current capacity.
Reconstruction of five check points (four road checkpoints and one checkpoint in the port of Makhachkala) which is to be completed in 2026 will increase the capacity to 19 million tonnes per year.
The port of Makhachkala handled about 3 million tonnes of cargo in 2022. In the first quarter of 2023, the port handled nearly 1 million tonnes. Valentin Ivanov says that further development of the port of Makhachkala is associated with the plans on attraction of investments, particularly for the construction of a ferry complex, enhancement of container handling capacity and development of grain facilities to handle 1.5 million tonnes per year. The development of the port check point will double the throughput capacity to 9 million tonnes by 2026.
North-South international transport corridor (ITC) is a 7,200-kilometre-long transport artery from St Petersburg to ports in Iran and India. North-South ITC has a western and an eastern branch, both running across Iran. The western one foresees cargo transportation by road via Rasht, the eastern one – by railway. The end point in Iran is the port of Bandar Abbas from which cargo can be delivered to India by sea. The western branch also crosses Azerbaijan, the eastern one – Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Besides, direct water transportation from Russia to Iran by the Caspian Sea is possible.
The volume of Russian cargo transported by the North-South ITC is expected to double by 2030, from the current 17 million tonnes to 32 million tonnes.
According to earlier reports of IAA PortNews, North-South ITC cargo traffic in Q1’23 doubled to 2.3 million tonnes.
