Azerbaijan, Georgia, Türkiye move to boost freight on Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway

Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye have signed a memorandum of understanding to expand freight traffic along the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway, the Azerbaijani Railways (ADY) announced on October 1.

The agreement was concluded during Transport Week in Almaty and was signed by ADY Chairman Rovshan Rustamov, Georgian Railways CEO Lasha Abashidze, and Turkish State Railways Chairman Ufuk Yalçın, Caliber.Az reports.

The memorandum aims to enhance the competitiveness of the BTK route compared with other transport corridors, attract additional cargo flows through optimised delivery times, and apply competitive tariffs to ensure stable conditions and transparent pricing, ADY said.

Under the agreement, delivery times for cargo along the Alat–Böyük Kəsik and Gardabani–Akhaltsikhe sections will not exceed 24 hours, while the Yalama–Böyük Kəsik segment is limited to 48 hours, excluding customs and border procedures.

In Türkiye, transit times are capped at 60 hours for the Kars–Mersin route and 70 hours for Kars–Istanbul, meaning shipments from Alat to Mersin could take around 4.5 days.

The parties also committed to notifying each other of any delays and taking measures to restore the schedule. Freight tariffs will be determined through mutual agreement.

The memorandum highlights plans to develop a joint digital platform or interface to monitor cargo and streamline documentation, reinforcing a stable and predictable operating regime for the BTK line and improving conditions for shippers, ADY said.

By Aghakazim Guliyev