Baku International Sea Trade Port (BISTP) has signed a memorandum of understanding with companies and other entities operating in Venlo, Limburg Province in southeast Netherlands, near the German border. A delegation from Port of Baku visited Limburg last week with the aim of reaching agreements in the field of logistics.
Dutch partners include Cabooter Group, SMART Logistics Center Venlo, the Limburg Development and Investment Company, Greenport Venlo, KLG Europe, Northern Limburg Development Council, the Azerbaijan-Netherlands Business Hub and the Fontys University of Applied Sciences.
Ports of Europe reports in its article Baku Port signs agreement with Venlo transport hub in the Netherlands that the city of Venlo, located on the border with Germany, has distribution offices of the world’s largest companies, covering a wide range of agribusiness, leading brands of clothing, electronics and other industries. Most of the cargo, mainly from major ports such as Rotterdam, Antwerp and Amsterdam, is delivered locally and transferred to other parts of Europe, mainly via Germany.
BISTP general director Taleh Ziyadov commented that the cooperation is based on the strategy of turning Azerbaijan into a regional hub: “Our cooperation, the foundation of which is being laid today, will be the result of attracting well-known companies from the Netherlands and Europe to the port of Baku. It is gratifying that the Dutch companies in the logistics chain between Asia and Europe pay special attention to the new port of Baku located in Alat settlement, and seek to involve various services and production in our country.”
Both parties also agreed with logistics companies operating in Venlo for the first test container transportation along the Venlo-Istanbul-Baku-China route next month. Baku port was also consider opening representative in Venlo. As part of the agreement reached with the Fontys University, Baku Port specialists will be involved in training and practical experience for a six-month period in Venlo.
SMART Logistics Centre Venlo has an overall concept in which businesses work together with the government and educational and research institutions so that the logistics region of North Limburg in the Netherlands can expand to become a key European logistics hub. Currently, there are about 200 stakeholders participating, most of which come from the logistics sector.
Baku Port is taking steps to become a regional transport and logistics hub in Eurasia. A new port is now under construction in Alyat. By the end of the first phase of construction, the cargo processing capacity of the new port will increase to about 10-11.5 million tons and 40,000 – 50,000 TEU. By the end of the second and third stages of construction, the cargo processing capacity is planned to reach about 25 million tons and up to 1 million TEU per year.
Once part of the Silk Road trade network, Central Eurasia is poised to regain its historical role as a commercial bridge between east and west, north and south – the new Silk Road. Azerbaijan is located at the crossroads of major Eurasian transport corridors. The country and Baku port could become a commercial bridge between Europe and Asia, and a major distribution hub in Eurasia for the new Silk Road.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev was in China last week to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, ahead of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (new Silk Road) to be held from April 25 to 27 in Beijing. Both countries aim to cooperate on the creation of the digital Silk Road and development of the Silk Road e-commerce.
Azerbaijan is a member of the International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC) – a 7,200-km long multi-modal network of ship, rail, and road routes for transport of freight between India, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Central Asia and Europe. The objective of the corridor is to increase trade connectivity between major cities such as Mumbai, Moscow, Baku, Astrakhan, Tehran, Bandar Abbas and Bandar Anzali.
The country is working with Romania, Georgia, and Turkmenistan to promote a multimodal corridor for the transport of goods between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea (Caspian Sea – Black Sea International Transport Corridor project – ITC-CSBS). It will link the ports of Constanţa (Romania), Poti (Georgia), Baku (Azerbaijan) and Turkmenbashi (Turkmenistan).
Also, Baku is part of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), also known as the Middle Corridor. It starts from Southeast Asia and China, runs through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia and further to European countries.
