Liliana Krutonog, General Director of MALBI-trans s.r.o., first of all, briefly described the country in which our forum was held – Georgia. Georgia’s economic performance is impressive, with steady growth in gross domestic product and declining inflation pointing to the country’s prospects. Forecasts for the coming years are optimistic, with GDP expected to grow by 5% in 2024 and 5.5% in 2025, as well as a significant reduction in public debt.
Turning to the topic of the TMTM corridor, Liliana noted that it represents an alternative in the current situation, with narrow sections and insufficient capacity, similar to those encountered on the corridor through Brest. However, the influence of the European Union and infrastructure investment programs allow us to expect improvement within 2-3 years.
The main delivery route of the MALBI-trans company, which they used previously, passed through Malashevich and Brest. However, today we can see increased interest from customers in alternative logistics routes. The main audience of their clients are manufacturers of auto parts, and the main direction of transportation is Kazakhstan.
The development of logistics is in constant motion. Not only is the infrastructure developing, but significant changes are also taking place in logistics processes. Today we are witnessing dynamic development, where constant changes are taking place. Issues such as conflicts in certain regions can immediately change the flow of goods and logistics routes. This ever-changing logistics landscape is exciting, and we hope to see many interesting and promising projects along the TMTM corridor.
In addition, Liliana presented a new container terminal in the Czech Republic, which is a joint project with partners – the companies Innofreight, Budamar and Medlog, a branch of MSC. This trimodal terminal provides extensive logistics capabilities and they actively use its infrastructure to improve the quality of services and meet customer needs.
“We have encountered a number of challenges on the TMTM corridor, including low capacity and sub-standard train lengths. This results in us not being able to ship regularly, which is a major problem.
In addition, the transit time on our last shipment from Europe to Kazakhstan was 90 days, which is unacceptable for our customers. We recognize the importance of improving the infrastructure of this corridor and hope that the planned changes will address these issues. “, – shared Liliana Krutonog.
It can be seen that large investments are currently being made in the construction of new terminals and infrastructure development, including support from Kazakhstan and the European Union. It is expected that by the end of the year it will be possible to achieve the expected level of transit time, which will make logistics on this corridor more competitive.
In Uzbekistan, MALBI-trans, represented by the Trans Vector branch, specializes mainly in transportation between China and Central Asia. Although they transport only a small amount of cargo in containers, the focus is on project logistics. Kazakhstan also handles a significant volume of traffic between China and Kazakhstan, which is in line with the country’s development prospects.
Despite this, MALBI-trans has a branch in Spain and they plan to be active in the Iberian Peninsula, starting with road transport. This opens up new opportunities and growth prospects in the region. Despite certain organizational difficulties, the MALBI-trans team is ready for a confident step forward in this promising market.