The line will provide a direct link along the entire length of the North-South route
Vladimir Putin and President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ebrahim Raisi took part, via videoconference, in a ceremony for signing an agreement between the Government of Russia and the Government of Iran on cooperation in financing the design, construction and supply of goods and services for the Rasht-Astara railway line in Iran, aimed at boosting transportation via the International North-South Transport Corridor, according to the official website of the Kremlin.
Vladimir Putin reminded that the line would connect Russian ports on the Baltic Sea and other northern seas to Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf and of the Indian Ocean. According to him, a 162-kilometre railway line will be built between the cities of Rasht and Astara in Iran and will allow to create direct and uninterrupted railway transportation along the entire length of the North-South route.
“The unique North-South transport artery, due to include the Rasht-Astara railway line, will help considerably diversify global transport flows. Traffic via the new corridor will possess substantial competitive advantages. For example, it will take about 10 days to deliver consignments from St Petersburg to Mumbai. I would like to note, as a comparison, that it takes 30 to 45 days to deliver them using traditional commercial routes. In effect, this makes it possible to slash delivery deadlines and costs. Freight traffic volumes will soar noticeably, our two states will consolidate their transit potential, Russian and Iranian goods will obtain more convenient and diverse access to external markets, in terms of specific routes,” said the President of Russia.
“We are expecting that a cooperation agreement on expanding the railway infrastructure and freight traffic via the North-South route will be finalised in a trilateral format involving the Azerbaijani side as soon as possible. This will make it possible to create the required legal framework for successfully coordinating the actions of our three countries in the future,” he added.
As IAA PortNews wrote earlier, the Rasht-Astara railway is one of the key projects of North–South ITC, an alternative to the route linking the Europe and the countries of the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean via the Suez Canal.
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.