BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 10. From January to July 2023, cargo movement through the Baku International Sea Trade Port grew by 14 percent (500,000 tons), from 3.6 million tons to 4.1 million tons, Head of the Department of Strategic Planning and Development of the Baku International Sea Trade Port Khudayar Hasanli told Trend.
He also claims that the transshipment of wheeled vehicles (TIR) has grown from 28,000 to 29,000.
"I'd like to point out that the turnover of wheeled vehicles between Turkey and Central Asia is 120,000 TIR." Approximately 25 percent of this equipment now flows via Azerbaijani territory. We hope to increase this figure to 50 percent, or 60,000 wheeled vehicles. The turnover of wheeled vehicles is just 20,000 TIR between Turkey and Uzbekistan. "We believe it is critical to transfer wheeled vehicles between these countries via our territory," he said.
From January to July 2023, Hasanli observed a reduction in container transshipment of 9,285 TEU, from 33,008 TEU containers to 23,723.
"This decrease comes against the backdrop of a significant reduction in freight costs in China." "I want to emphasize that this is a short-term phenomenon, and we anticipate an increase in container traffic by the end of this year in comparison to previous years," he said.
According to the head of the Baku Port Department, there was also a drop at the bulk cargo terminal during the 2023 reporting period.
"From January to July, the bulk cargo terminal handled 588 tons, compared to 732 tons during the same period last year." In addition, like with container transshipment, we anticipate an increase in bulk cargo transshipment towards the end of the year," he stated.