BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 27. The vigorous development of the North-South trans-Caspian branch of the international transport corridor (ITC) generates positive dynamics of cargo turnover growth in Caspian seaports, particularly in Astrakhan and Oli, the statement of the press service of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Energy of the Astrakhan region said, Trend reports.
According to the data of this ministry of the Russian region, the cargo turnover through the ports of Astrakhan and Olya increased by 36 percent from January through July 2024 compared to the same period last year and reached 3.2 million tons.
Meanwhile, the transshipment of import cargo for seven months increased by 64 percent (up to 623,000 tons), export cargo by 30 percent (up to 2.4 million tons), and cabotage cargo by 29 percent (up to 138,000 tons).
The statement cites the head of this regional ministry, Ilya Volynsky, who says that foreign trade turnover of ports along the trans-Caspian branch “North-South” is traditionally formed at the expense of Russian-Iranian trade.
“Cargo transit via the North-South ITC through Iran to the Persian Gulf countries and South Asia is developing rapidly,” Volynsky added.
Following the results of 2024, the cargo turnover of Astrakhan and Olya ports may reach 6 million tons against 4.3 million tons by the results of 2023.
The Olya seaport is located 100 km south of Astrakhan in the delta of the Volga River on 67 km of the Volga-Caspian Sea Shipping Canal. The port is a universal port for the transshipment of general, container, and car ferry cargoes and occupies a key position at the crossroads of a promising transport flow connecting Russia with Iran, Middle Eastern countries, and India, and a transport corridor ensuring access to Kazakhstan, China, and Central Asian countries. The port's throughput capacity is 4.5 million tons of cargo per year.
The seaport of Astrakhan is located at the mouth of the Volga River and runs from 3,290 km of the Volga River to 3,630 km of the river and further along the Volga-Caspian Sea shipping channel. The seaport's water area is adjacent to the water area of the Olya seaport in a straight line. The seaport of Astrakhan includes 14 terminals handling cargo. Its transshipment capacity is about 12 million tons.
The multimodal North-South ITC has been developing in several directions since 2000, with the participation of 14 countries.
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