Kazakhstan joins official launch of Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway
Kazakh Transport Vice Minister Zhanibek Taizhanov took part in the official opening of the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars (BTK) railway on June 2 at the Akhalkalaki railway station in Georgia, Qazinform News Agency cites the Kazakh Ministry of Transport.
The BTK railway is a key component of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR). The route connects the railway networks of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Türkiye, creating additional opportunities for transporting cargo from Kazakhstan across the Caspian Sea to Türkiye and European countries.
The development of the BTK infrastructure is expected to further strengthen Kazakhstan’s transit potential, increase international freight volumes, and improve the efficiency of logistics chains across Eurasia.
Stretching 827 kilometers, the railway has operated in test mode since 2017. Major infrastructure upgrades undertaken between May 2023 and May 2024 significantly expanded the route’s capacity.
Following the modernization, the annual freight capacity of the BTK railway increased fivefold, from 1 million to 5 million tons.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Kazakhstan’s Transport Ministry had announced the launch of a digital system to exchange international road transport permits with Azerbaijan, Türkiye, and Kyrgyzstan.