The China-EU train consisting of 42 containers with licorice root on board arrived from Turkmenistan in the Chinese city of Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, the China News Network portal reports.
This is the first-ever train that transported imported medicinal raw materials from Turkmenistan to China. In addition, for the first time, the China—EU train on its way back passed along the Turkmenistan-Xi’an route.
Intermodal transportation by special train was jointly organized by the Turkmen company “Bir Kuwwat” and the Chinese company Shaanxi Investment Group International Logistics Co., Ltd. A cargo of 850 kilograms of licorice set off from the Caspian International Turkmenbashi Port to the Kazakhstan port of Aktau. Onward, it was reloaded onto the railway and the train entered the territory of China through the border crossing in Khorgos.
The entire journey was 7,562 kilometers and lasted 22 days.
Thus, new logistical opportunities have opened up in the foreign trade exchange between the Belt and Road countries, which favor mutually beneficial cooperation in the traditional Chinese medicine industry between the two countries.
Successful cargo transportation from Turkmenistan to Shaanxi province was the result of last year’s meeting of foreign ministers in the format “China+Five Central Asian Countries” in Xi’an. Then the Turkmen delegation, which included representatives of transport departments, the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, visited the International Logistics Company Shaanxi Investment to discuss business cooperation between enterprises of China and Turkmenistan.
The coast of the Amu Darya River in the east of Turkmenistan is a natural place where wild licorice grows. Licorice root is rich in many useful trace elements, including glycyrrhizic acid, which is valuable component for the manufacture of drugs in traditional Chinese medicine.
Since 2020, the logistics company Bir Kuwwat has been providing a wide range of services for the organization of cargo transportation between the CIS countries, the EU and China. Bir Kuwwat offers such services as the delivery of various goods by all modes of transport – rail, road, air and sea, multimodal transportation, port services and project logistics. ///nCa, 31 August 2022