The parties stressed the role of multimodal rail transport in the expansion of economic ties and increase of trade turnover between the two countries.
The issues discussed at the meeting included ramping up joint efforts to more effectively use Trans-Caspian International Transport Route against the background of the situation in the region and increase of multimodal railroad cargo transportation in the China-Europe-China and Central Asia-Europe-Middle Asia directions.
Strengthening of joint activities and partnership in these areas was also the focus of the separate bilateral meetings of the representatives of Azerbaijan Railways with the representatives of the leading European cargo companies Rail Cargo, Metrans and Bahnoperator.
Rail Cargo operates in 18 countries, has 12 international logistics centers and 16 terminals. The company’s annual freight traffic is about 94 million tons. Metrans handles 200 block trains a week. The annual freight traffic is 1.4 million TEU. Bahnoperator dispatches 20 container trains a week from China to Europe. These are quite high figures.
The activities of these companies, operating in Central and Southern Europe, serve to move the hub from Northern Europe to Southern and Central Europe and maintain the freight traffic on the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.
During the delegation’s visit, ADY Container LLC, a subsidiary of Azerbaijan Railways, and Austria’s Rail Cargo signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation. The parties will work together to ensure smooth and fast delivery of multimodal rail shipments from Europe via the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, as well as cargo from the Romanian port of Constanta to the Georgian port of Poti and then to Central Asia and China. In this context ADY Container together with Georgian companies GR Logistics and KTZ Express with the support of ASCO is launching container transportation of cargoes between ports of Poti and Constanta as part of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route. The cargo vessel Shair Vagif will ply between these ports three times a month, 10 days a month. Two block trains will be transported by sea on each voyage.
