ASTANA, Kazakhstan, June 25. KTZ Express (a subsidiary of Kazakhstan Railways, KTZ), Chinese Xi'an Free Trade Port Construction and Operation and Belarus' Unionway LLC have signed a Memorandum of Intent to develop joint logistics services, Trend reports.
According to KTZ, the memorandum was signed in Shanghai as part of the Transport logistic China 2024 exhibition.
Thus, the parties agreed to join forces by creating a logistics terminal at the Svisloch station in Belarus for the processing and distribution of goods transported along the China-Europe route and in the opposite direction.
As Kazakhstan Railways noted, this step is an important stage in the development of transport infrastructure and the creation of new opportunities to increase the transit potential of the country.
Meanwhile, the volume of cargo transportation by rail in Kazakhstan amounted to 416.4 million tons from January through December 2023. This is 2.8 percent more than from January through December 2022.
At the same time, cargo turnover by rail for the above period amounted to 326.8 billion ton-kilometers, which is 4.8 percent more than in the same period in 2022.
To note, the implementation of several large-scale projects began in the field of railway transport in Kazakhstan in 2023.
According to government data, the construction of a railway line bypassing the Almaty station (74 km) and the Darbaza - Maktaaral line (152 km) began in November. The first will shorten goods delivery time by 24 hours and alleviate the Almaty railway junction by 40 percent, while the second will enhance throughput in the direction of Central Asia by 10 million tons.
In addition, work on the Bakhty-Ayagoz railway line, which will span 272 kilometers, began in December. The realization of this project will enhance freight turnover between Kazakhstan and China by 20 million tons.
In general, over the next 3 years, more than 1,300 km of new railways will be built in the country.
Moreover, in 2023, 133 locomotives were purchased, which will renew the fleet of Kazakhstan's locomotives by 6 percent and reduce the level of wear and tear to 52 percent.
To improve the convenience of passengers, 856 passenger cars are being purchased. This year, 100 of them have already started operating on existing routes. As a result, the depreciation of the fleet was reduced from 47 percent to 45 percent.