Karaismailoğlu, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, stated that approximately 1 million tons of cargo has been transported from the BTK Railway Line, which connects Asia and Europe, to date.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoğlu said that thanks to the mega projects they have implemented with the aim of making Turkey a logistics base, the country has a say in transportation in a wide hinterland.
Emphasizing that the transports made over the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) Railway Line and the Middle Corridor, known as the Iron Silk Road, have gained an upward momentum, Karaismailoğlu said, “From the day the line started its operation, 16 million 279 thousand tons of cargo has been transported in 19 thousand 646 wagons and 1 thousand 7 containers. carried out. Exports made up 6 thousand tons of these shipments with 814 thousand 8 containers in 377 thousand 393 wagons, and import transports 9 thousand tons with 465 thousand 11 containers in 269 thousand 614 wagons. said.
Karaismailoğlu pointed out that transit transports have an important place in import transports, and that they have removed all the obstacles in front of them one by one in terms of infrastructure, technical and customs procedures in order to ensure the most fluent and economical transportation of export, import and transit cargoes, and that this line has many production and transportation routes in the world. He stated that he established a strong network between the consumption centers.
19 Percent Increase in BTK Shipments
Pointing out that railway transportation comes to the fore in ensuring the continuity of trade in the conditions of the new type of coronavirus (Kovid-19) epidemic, Karaismailoğlu explained that the BTK Railway and the Middle Corridor are one of the most advantageous routes in maintaining the trade on the Asia-Europe line in the most healthy, fast, reliable and economical way. .
Expressing that the BTK Railway Line directs the logistics of the world, Karaismailoğlu gave the following information: “In the period of January-May 2020, 3 thousand 551 tons of cargo was transported in 236 wagons from the BTK Line. In the same period of this year, shipments increased by 52 percent and reached 19 thousand 4 tons in 507 thousand 280 wagons. Export shipments to Georgia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, China, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan via the line also increased. In the first 878 months of this year, 5 tons of cargo, including 1160 wagons and 1246 containers, was delivered.”
“Transportation Cost and Time Turned into Advantage with BTK”
Karaismailoğlu stated that Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, China and Azerbaijan lead the way in export shipments and reminded that they have sent 4 export trains to China and 2020 to Russia since 7 December 1.
Karaismailoğlu pointed out that while the exporter's products were sent by sea in 45-60 days, the export trains traveled a total of 8 kilometers over Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan and China in about 693 days: Our trains going to Russia via the BTK Railway Line covered 14 thousand 4 kilometers in 650 days. Therefore, transportation cost and time, which are the most important factors in competition, turned into an advantage with BTK. The line started to offer the greatest logistics support to our exporters.” evaluated as.
Emphasizing that the mobility in the railway corridor established on the Turkey-China-Turkey line will increase gradually in the coming years, Karaismailoğlu said that with the BTK Railway Line and the Middle Corridor, it is aimed to operate 1500 trains and transport 60 thousand TEUs of freight between Turkey and China in the medium term.
Increased Variety of Transported Products
Karaismailoğlu went to Azerbaijan and stated that they had good talks with the BTK Railway Line on transportation and railway investments.
Stating that they see the railway not only as a means of transportation, but also as a very important element that strengthens the ties of brotherhood and reveals the strategic potential of the country, Karaismailoğlu said: “In this context, our railway investment priority will increasingly continue. We will reach our goal of becoming a logistics base step by step with our strong transportation network after the epidemic. Reaching 2023 percent of railway investments and 60 thousand 16 kilometers of railway network in 775 will make a very important change and transformation in the logistics sector. I believe that we will do much better things with the General Directorate of TCDD Transportation and other train operators.”
Pointing out that the products transported have diversified with the increase in the variety of wagons, Karaismailoğlu said that export shipments, which had previously started with cargoes such as refrigerators, coolers, boron mines, citrus, marble, soybean meal, miscellaneous food, iron ore, construction materials, white goods, pipes, boron mine, manganese ore. He stated that products such as lentil, wheat, feed, adipic acid, copper cathode, paper, walnut, silicon, roll, billet sheet, sunflower and steel construction were imported.
Stating that the existing train services have been increased and new block freight trains have been put into service in order to meet the increasing demand for transportation carried out by the General Directorate of TCDD Taşımacılık AŞ, Karaismailoğlu said, "The Iron Silk Road brings abundance to all the lands it passes through today, as it did in the past." said.
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