A Turkmen delegation consisting of representatives of the Transport and Communications Agency under the Cabinet of Ministers arrived in the Astrakhan region of the Russian Federation to discuss the project of opening a logistics center, Russian media reported.
The talks will also explore the issue of launching ferry services from the port of Turkmenbashi to Astrakhan harbors.
“This is the first experience where we will work seriously, systematically with our neighboring countries. And we are very much counting on this cooperation with the Turkmen side. We are interested in this cooperation, because the direction to Turkmenistan and other countries through the port of Turkmenbashi is in many ways an example for the construction of ports on the Caspian Sea,” said Sergey Milushkin, Director General of JSC “Special Economic Zone “Lotos”.
In turn, the General director of the Balkan shipyard, Seyitguly Bayseidov, expressed the interest of the Turkmen business in the logistics hub project. “Our businessmen will also be interested to learn about the details, especially what conditions are in the legislative, economic sphere. It is interesting to know about the terms of the contract and the investment,” he said.
To date, the foreign trade turnover between the Astrakhan region and Turkmenistan is about US $ 200 million.
The parties are actively developing cooperation in railway, automobile, and air transport.
New opportunities for partnership will arise with the joining of Turkmenistan to the North-South transport corridor and the organization of a ferry line between the ports of Olya and Turkmenbashi. This will increase cargo flows between all the Caspian countries.///nCa, 25 August 2022