Caspian, Eurasia, Central Asia, Alatau, Khorgos - the government discussed the progress of creating a network of cross-border hubs
Images | Ministry of Trade and Integration
Kazakhstan aims to become a full-fledged transportation and logistics hub in Central Asia and the Caspian region. This task was set by the Head of State, for its implementation around the country, on the borders with China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, the Russian Federation and the Caspian Sea transport and logistics and trade hubs are being created. To monitor the progress of work on the creation of this network, Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin held a meeting of the operational headquarters with all interested government agencies, representatives of investors, akimats of the regions where these major projects are being implemented, press service of the Ministry of Trade and Integration reports.
The construction project of the "Sarzha" multifunctional marine terminal at the Caspian hub is progressing at full speed and on schedule. The terminal's capacity is 10 million tons per year, to be completed in 2030. The project will include a grain terminal with a capacity of 1.5 million tons, a general cargo terminal of 1 million tons, a universal terminal of 2 million tons, a liquid cargo terminal of 5.5 million tons and a transport and logistics center (TLC). The first stages of construction of the TLC, grain terminal and ground infrastructure have already been completed. Work has begun on the construction of a container hub in the ports of "Aktau" and "Kuryk".
A representative of "Semurg invest" LLP stated that the general cargo terminal is already fully ready for operation: the first 10 railcars were received the other day, all necessary railroad tracks were built, and the pier with berthing facilities was commissioned. All this will make it possible to increase the export potential of the Caspian route as early as 2023.
As Serik Zhumangarin noted at the meeting, the Caspian transportation hub project should be considered in conjunction with the Head of State's instruction to build a high-speed railroad from Chelyabinsk to Iran via Kazakhstan.
The construction of a high-speed highway is a large-scale cooperation project in the Eurasian space. For this purpose it is necessary to reconstruct "bottlenecks" of the railway network "Beineu - Mangistau" and on the section of the highway "Beineu - Shalkar". At the next meeting of KTZ in cooperation with the Akimat of Mangistau region, it is necessary to prepare specific proposals for the construction of the "Orsk-Bolashak" railroad and a detailed vision of the construction of the underlying infrastructure. We are on the verge of signing a free trade agreement with Iran on a wide range of goods, we have a task to bring the trade turnover with Iran to $3 billion. And this is despite the fact that the main goods will be food products. The Center for Trade Policy "Qaztrade", for its part, needs to work out mechanisms to support exporters of grain to Iran", - said Deputy Prime Minister.
The industrial trade and logistics complex (ITLC) "Alatau", located on the border with Kyrgyzstan, is planned to be realized in the form of an industrial zone. The regional industrial zone "Alatau" has already been created by the resolution of the akim of Zhambyl oblast dated September 12, 2023, a land plot of 36 hectares has been allocated, and the investor is developing a feasibility study. The issues of technical support and supply of communications for construction have been resolved. In the near future, a management company for the construction of the complex will be established jointly with the investor. The ITLC is scheduled to be launched in Q2 2026.
The "Eurasia" (ЦТТ) Cross-Border Trade Center (CTC) is designed to become an international economic platform in the EAEU. ЦТТ будет размещен на примыкающей к аэропорту г. Уральска территории. The CTC will be located on the territory adjacent to the Uralsk airport. There is an industrial zone (281 hectares), which acts as a hub for cargo flows, with access to Orenburg, Saratov, Samara and further on to the largest federal districts of the Russian Federation and Eastern European countries. In addition to the CTC there are also provided zones for agro-logistic center (storage, trade, processing, logistics of agricultural and food products, with facilities of roadside service and customs clearance) and aircargo terminal (cargo terminal and international multi-brand full-field center). As of today, the Akimat of West Kazakhstan Oblast is working on the construction of the infrastructure of the industrial zone for the CTC. The construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.
At the Khorgos hub it is planned to create a food hub, a place of collection, storage and distribution of food products of Kazakhstani and foreign producers for subsequent export to the Chinese and Asian-Pacific food markets. This will significantly strengthen the food security of Kazakhstan and China. In light of the upcoming diversification of the country into a powerful transportation and logistics hub in the Eurasian space, the food sector has great prospects. Here it is necessary to build a modern food hub of class "A", focused on the storage of food products, including those that need a special temperature regime: seafood, fruits and vegetables, meat and dairy products and deep freezing. Currently, a land plot of at least 50 hectares in the territory of the International Center for Border Cooperation "Khorgos" has been identified for its construction.
As a result of the meeting, Serik Zhumangarin instructed all bodies responsible for the implementation of the five cross-border hubs to prepare detailed development concepts and plans for the infrastructure.
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