Russia ready to construct Rasht-Astara railway

In 2026, Russia is ready to begin construction of the final 162-kilometer Rasht-Astara section of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) in northern Iran.

Iran plans to complete the land acquisition for the Rasht-Astara railway section of the International North-South Transport Corridor (ISTC) by the end of 2025, allowing the Russian contractor to begin work on the project immediately, Amin Tarfa, head of the International Relations Department at the Iranian Ministry of Roads and Urban Development said.

"The Russian contractor has already secured 35% of the land acquired for the project,”

- Amin Tarfa informed.

The Russian investment and construction company Caspian Service will build the long-awaited missing section. Its client is the Iranian Construction and Development of Transport Infrastructure Company (CDTIC), a subsidiary of the MRUD company.