ASTANA, Kazakhstan, September 21. Freight turnover on the Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) network has increased to 179.1 billion net tons from January through August 2023, which is 7.7 percent higher than the same period last year, Trend reports.
This was stated during a briefing with the participation of the heads of KTZ-Freight Transportation LLP and Kaztemirtrans JSC on the results of transportation of socially significant cargo (coal, grain, and grinding products) for 8 months in 2023.
As noted at the briefing, more than 69 million tons of coal were transported by rail. Of these, 48 million tons were shipped throughout the republic, and 20.8 million tons were exported.
Over the past period, over 43.1 million tons were delivered to the thermal power plants, which is 950,000 tons more than the same period last year. Over 4.8 million tons of household coal were transported, which corresponds to the 2022 level.
As of September 20, 2023, the coal reserves in the thermal power plant warehouses amount to more than 4.8 million tons, which is 10 percent higher than the same period last year. Of the 29 thermal power plants and state district power plants, 16 have reserves that are 2 or more times higher than the established standards of the Ministry of Energy, and 10 have reserves that are 1.5 times higher.
By the end of the year, it is planned to transport 9.5 million tons of solid fuel every month. In total, over 106 million tons of coal will be transported by rail this year, including 76 million tons for Kazakh consumers.
Grain loading from January through August 2023 amounted to more than 7.7 million tons, which is 45 percent more than the same figure in 2022. 1.3 million tons were transported within the republic, which is 6 percent higher than last year. Over 6.3 million tons of grain were exported (+57 percent compared to 2022). 1.9 million tons of grinding products were loaded (+16 percent), including 1.4 million tons (+30 percent) for export.
By the end of the year, more than 1 million tons of grain will be transported monthly by rail. In general, by the end of 2023, KTZ is ready to ship 12 million tons of grain, including 10 million tons for export.