At last week’s European Silk Road (ESRS) summit in Duisburg, raising transit tariffs in Kazakhstan became a hot topic for Chinese and European rail freighters. Sadvakkas Seitzhanov, general manager of Kazakhstan International Logistics, issued a statement that transit tariffs through Kazakhstan will remain stable in 2023. It is reported by Railway Supply magazine with reference to RailFreight.

KTZ

The general manager of Air Sea Group, said that the commission increase was caused by the invisible hands of the market. With the growth of market demand, the rising cost of travel through Kazakhstani railways will also be further digested by the market. An international relations officer at the China Communications and Transportation Association’s International Train Advisory Services Center said the price increase is actually driven by UTLC.

UTLC is a joint transport and logistics company formed by the Kazakh Railways (KTZ), Russian Railways and the Belarusian Railways. Since the company is headquartered in Moscow, the price increase is likely an order from Russia. The role of UTLC in the further work of KTZ was also discussed at ESRS, but the Kazakh company did not give a clear answer.

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Rising costs do create some challenges for Air Sea Group operations. The company is currently helping customers reduce costs by improving timeliness and increasing container turnaround times. While the increase in KTZ’s tariffs is not in doubt, Seitzhanov said at the event that KTZ opposes an increase in transit tariffs and that tariffs will remain stable next year.

A representative of Max Container China said that the increase in cost for Kazakhstan brought big problems to the route passing through Alashankou and Korgos. Therefore, the price of the route through Erenhot becomes more competitive in comparison with it.

When asked about raising fees, different Chinese companies offered different solutions. Dimerco’s general manager, Xi’an, said that the increase in transit tariffs in Kazakhstan has increased overall transportation costs. If this part of the cost does not decrease in the future, and the timeliness of transportation cannot be optimized and improved, this will likely result in goods moving along the road.

In the coming year there will be new activities in Central Asia. Ahead is the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Ukraine railway, and the capacity of the Middle Corridor passing through two seas is constantly being upgraded. The dawn of the Trans-Afghan Railway is approaching, and the railway running west from Kazakhstan is also full of possibilities. In addition to changing the tariffs of KTZ, further story leaves more room for imagination.

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