Prospects for the construction of the "China – Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan" railway, which will connect the rail networks of the three countries, have been assessed by analysts from the Eurasian Development Bank.
The railway will follow the route "Kashgar – Torugart – Arpa Valley – Makmal – Jalal-Abad – Kara-Suu – Andijan" with a length of 523 km.
The freight potential is estimated at 7 to 13 million tons per year. Construction may take six to eight years.
If implemented, the new railway will become part of the transcontinental Eurasian route connecting China, Central Asia, the Middle East, Turkey, and Europe through a junction with the "North – South" ITC and TRACECA in Turkmenistan.
According to the bank's analysts, the "China – Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan" railway is not a competitor to the Russian Trans-Siberian Railway and the railway corridor from China through Kazakhstan, as it is oriented towards other target markets, involves a large number of transit countries, and requires multiple transshipments of cargo.
At the same time, the new railway will allow some of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan's foreign trade and transit freight flows to switch from road to rail transport.
Advantages of the project for Kyrgyzstan: solving transportation bottlenecks, increasing transit revenues, and rail freight transportation between the northern and southern regions of the country.
Advantages for Uzbekistan: a shorter route for container shipments to and from China.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
July 15, 2024