Russia and Azerbaijan increase freight traffic by more than 25%

A meeting between General Director of Russian Railways Oleg Belozerov and Chairman of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC Javid Gurbanov was held in Moscow, according to the press service of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC.

The parties noted a significant increase in freight traffic between Russia and Azerbaijan, with the volume up by 26.7% in the 11 months of 2019 to the end of November compared to the same period last year.

One of the factors behind this significant increase was the transition to electronic data exchange. 

It was noted that the further development of freight traffic between Russia and Azerbaijan would be facilitated by the increasing digitisation of the transportation process, as well as the modernisation of railway infrastructure. In particular, in 2020 it is planned to start designing the transition to alternating current on the section between Derbent and the state border.

During the meeting, the heads of the two railway companies also discussed tariff regulation and cooperation on Trans-Siberian shipments. In addition, the parties discussed the possibility of organising a regular container train from Russia’s Far Eastern ports to Azerbaijan. According to Belozerov, the company would be able to implement such a service on a regular basis with Azerbaijan if sufficient traffic volumes are confirmed.

During the meeting, the sides also paid special attention to cooperation on the development of the North-South International Transport Corridor.