The soon to be completed Baku - Tbilisi - Kars (BTK) Railway will be used as part of the US “Caucasian Corridor” to move troops and equipment from Afghanistan as the country withdraws its military from the country. The Caucasian Corridor is said by Russian sources to involve road transport to Mary in Turkmenistan where […]
Oman Transport Minister Dr Ahmed Mohammed Salim Al Futaisi said last week that the new Oman railway network will be part of an integrated transport network to include road, rail, air and sea, and should boost development in the area. The intent is to help the Sultanate diversify away from oil exports and help drive […]
Oman is to host the GCC Metro and Rail Conference on the 15 and 16 September in Muscat. The conference will highlight the potential of the new rail and metro networks in the region and allow discussions of the hurdles to be dealt with in building them. Massive investment in rail and metro projects creates an […]
NewPort Tank Containers has now signed a Memorandum of Understanding to move cargo on the UAE’s new railway network. This the latest business to sign up to use the railway network as businesses from around the world with interests in the Middle East take a great interest in the new railways in the region. Etihad […]
23.4 million tonnes of cargo passed through Azerbaijan on the Transport Corridor Europe Caucasus Asia (TRACECA) in the 5 months to May. Where road transport on the Corridor was around 50% of the total volume, rail accounted for 34%. Railway volumes are set to increase with new railways being built in the region in the […]
Two Chinese companies have agreed to invest $2bn in Iran’s railways. The deal comes after a bilateral agreement between China and Iran in February to double bilateral trade in the next three years. Chinese companies CMC and SUPOWER have agreed to help upgrade the 900 km track between Tehran and Mashhad. New signalling systems will […]
In a process that was originally meant to be completed by the end of 2012, sources from Etihad Rail say that the tenders to build Stage 2 of the new UAE railway network are about to be awarded. Invites to tender were originally sent out in July 2012 and after some delay it was announced […]
Talks are underway between nations about building a new railway line between China and Eastern Europe. Such a line would cost $150 billion and could well be near completion by 2020 and fully operational by 2030. The 6000km line would come from Xinjiang Province in China, pass through Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Turkey […]
The delayed high speed railway line between Istanbul and Ankara will be opened on July 25. Originally due to start services in May, the line has been hit with problems due to cable thefts on the line. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan will formally open the line. The new line will cut journey times between the […]
Two major aggregates companies have signed a Memoranda of Understanding to use the UAE’s new rail network. Last week, Tarmac Middle East agreed to use the network while this week, the Al Jaber Group signed up. This shows interest from companies in the region in changing modes from road to rail. Last week, Tarmac signed […]
