Russian Minister Due in Iran to Ink Contract on Rasht-Astara Railway Construction: Envoy

Speaking in a conference of Sea-based Economy with a focus on the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), Kazem Jalali stated that Russia has targeted to trasnport two million tons of goods in the eastern part of the corridor.

The western branch of the corridor was launched between Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran in 2023, and an agreement for the construction of the Rasht-Astara Railway was signed in the presence of Iranian and Russian presidents later, he said.

Fortunately, effective steps were taken a few months ago regarding the signing of a contract on the construction operation of the railway project and it is hoped that the project will start soon following the visit of the Russian minister to Iran in the coming days, the envoy emphasized.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Jalali pointed to the third branch of the International North-South Transport Corridor, namely a mixed transport from Russia, the Caspian Sea and then Iran, which is of paramount importance.

In the two branches of the corridor, Iran will use the capacities of the third countries for the transportation of goods but the country’s capacities will be used for the transportation of goods in the third branch of the corridor directly, he said. 

He went on to say that a Caspian port will soon be connected to the rail network.

Earlier, Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development for Construction and Development of Railways, Ports and Airports Affairs Abbas Khatibi said that Iran’s third mega railway project, the Rasht-Caspian Railway, will be inaugurated by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (to end on March 20, 2024).