Thanks to the coordinated joint efforts of Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, the ferry service across the Caspian Sea between the ports of Turkmenbashi and Baku continues to operate, which is the most important transport artery providing freight flows in the vast geo-economic space. Within the framework of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, and one of the measures to ensure the viability of transport links is the launch of feeder links between the ports of Baku and Turkmenbashi.

The Baku International Sea Trade Port CJSC (BISTP/BMMTP) organised for the first time the transportation of bulk cargo in containers. This was made possible thanks to the cooperation agreement on strengthening and joint coordination of partnership in the field of container transportation of BMMTP CJSC with ADY Container LLC, a subsidiary of Azerbaijani Railways CJSC.

A special device for loading and unloading bulk cargoes, fitted in the Baku port, loaded 62 twenty-foot containers with 1300 tons of carbamide that had arrived from Turkmenistan, which were then sent to Turkey.

Particular attention is also paid to the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway line, where all necessary measures are taken for the uninterrupted and sustainable transportation of transit goods between Turkey and Central Asia, thereby ensuring the transportation of goods in the conditions of closed borders.

A new type of transportation was carried out in the Baku port on 13 April 2020: a total of 62 containers (20, 40 and 45 feet) were first loaded from trucks onto the feeder vessel ‘Balkan’, which set sail for the destination port of Turkmenbashi. The operator of this transportation was the ADY Container LLC supported by the Baku International Sea Trade Port CJSC and the Turkish Logistics Center.

The ‘Balkan’ vessel, intended for the carriage of goods both to Turkmenistan and in transit further to Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan, will sail once a week. If the volume of transported goods grows, then the frequency of running will increase in turn up to two times a week.

The use of feeder transport is currently an important measure aimed at maintaining import-export freight traffic under the conditions of restrictive measures and maintaining trade relations between the countries. At the same time, this will make it possible to be prepared for the post-coronavirus period, where a possibility of further use of feeder traffic with the participation of the ‘Balkan’ vessel to ensure container transportation on a regular basis will be optioned.

In the future, trains from Istanbul and from the Mersin port (Turkey) will begin to arrive at the Baku port, where they will be reloaded onto ships for further delivery to Central Asian countries.

During this difficult period, thanks to the joint actions with partners, Azerbaijan is doing everything possible to ensure regular operation of international transport corridors.