Central Asia

Kazakhstan’s President, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, held a meeting with YTO Express Co., Ltd Chairman Yu Huai Zhao to discuss prospective collaboration in e-commerce, transportation, and logistics. Tokayev highlighted the existing presence of major marketplaces like Alibaba, Wildberries, OZON, and JD.com in Kazakhstan, expressing the country’s plans to increase the share of e-commerce to 20% of the total trade market by 2030.

Today, a container train departed from the city of Xi’an along the Silk Road, heading through Kazakhstan to the countries of Central Asia, in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. The commemorative train is organized by the Sino-Kazakhstan Trading and Logistics Company and the International Dry Port of Xi’an, representing the joint venture Kedentransservice. The train consists of more than 1000 tons of cargo scheduled for delivery within 12-13 days.

The National Railway Company of Kazakhstan (KTZ) is actively participating in the Digital Bridge forum, a traditional event held in the capital for the past three years. The panel session on “AI and Logistics” explores key aspects of digitization, including the automation of train movement planning, optimization of operations across the mainline network, and other digital solutions.

Rhenus Logistics, based in Germany, and Uzbekistan Railways are embarking on a transformative collaboration through the signing of an official agreement outlining the creation of two joint ventures. These ventures will be responsible for managing intermodal terminals within Uzbekistan and will actively pursue expansion initiatives in the Central Asian region. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) solidifying this partnership was signed between Rhenus and Uztemiryulkonteyner, a subsidiary of Uzbekistan Railways, in the presence of Uzbek Transport Minister Ilhom Mahkamov, who sees this collaboration as a strategic move to enhance the country’s logistical significance.

The Rhenus Group has inked a collaborative memorandum with Uzbekistan Railway during the Central Asia Summit in Berlin held in late September. This partnership signifies the establishment of joint ventures focused on operating and expanding combined terminals in Andijan and Samarkand. The agreement, formalized in the presence of Uzbek Transport Minister Ilhom Makhamov, emphasizes a closer collaboration between Rhenus and Uzbekistan Railways to develop existing transshipment facilities within the country.

The Aktau Sea Trade Port continues its impressive growth, witnessing a 22% increase in cargo turnover during January-September 2023 compared to the same period last year, reaching over 3.38 million tons. Ongoing efforts include the establishment of a container hub within the port, designed to serve the countries of the Caspian region and Central Asia, providing a comprehensive range of services for container handling, cargo transshipment, storage services, railway terminals, repair workshops, and container inspection facilities.

In September 2023, the volume of cargo transportation by the Kazakhstan Temirtauzakii (KTZ) railways increased by 6.7%, reaching 22.1 million tons compared to the previous year. The total freight turnover across the country amounted to 14.6 million tons, exceeding the previous year by 5%, while the volume of exports increased by 10%, reaching over 7.5 million tons.

Ongoing developments at the port involve the creation of a container hub on its premises, slated to become a key element in servicing the container park for countries in the Caspian region and Central Asia. The project encompasses a full range of services, including container handling, cargo transshipment, warehouse services, railway sidings, repair workshops, and container inspection. Looking ahead, the port of Aktau aims to expand its throughput capacity, increasing its infrastructure capabilities for oil transshipment to 20 million tons per year.

At the “New Silk Way” business forum in Astana, international memorandums and agreements have been signed with the aim of significantly expanding Kazakhstan’s transportation capabilities. Among the signatories are KTZ Express and Rail Cargo Austria AG, who have entered into a memorandum of understanding and a cooperation agreement with DB Cargo Eurasia.

In the course of the XXVII World Road Congress in Prague, a significant agreement was reached between the World Road Association PIARC and the National Committee of PIARC in Kazakhstan, as reported by Trend.