Azerbaijan aims to boost freight traffic to 30 million tonnes by 2030

Azerbaijan has set a goal to increase its cargo transportation volume to 30 million tonnes by the end of 2030.

Anar Hasanov, head of the German-Azerbaijani Foreign Trade Chamber, made this announcement during the business forum "Innovations in Railway Technologies in Azerbaijan: Partnerships and Opportunities for German Companies", Caliber.Az reports.

He noted that last year, cargo transportation volumes reached approximately 18-19 million tonnes, and the target is to elevate that figure significantly by 2030.

Hasanov also highlighted that the contribution of railway transport to Azerbaijan's GDP has risen from 5.4% to 7% this year.

In August, Azerbaijan Railways CJSC projected that annual transit traffic could increase to 15 million tonnes by 2030, up from 6.8 million tonnes in 2023. Anar Gasimov, head of the company's strategic development department, indicated that if the interstate project to expand the North-South railway corridor is fully realized, transit traffic could reach 30 million tonnes annually by 2030.

Gasimov stated, "In general, Azerbaijan Railways plans to increase transportation from 18.2 million tonnes in 2023 to 30 million tonnes by 2030, and potentially up to 43 million tonnes in case the North-South ITC expansion project is fully implemented."

A key aspect of the North-South ITC railway expansion is the construction of the Resht-Astara road section in Iran. Russia, which is financing this project with a loan of approximately 1.3 billion euros from VTB Bank, has been intensifying negotiations with Iran’s new leadership.

The North-South ITC is a crucial multimodal corridor that has been in development since 2000, with several routes, including one through Azerbaijan and Iran.

By Tamilla Hasanova