Azerbaijan railways say eastbound traffic to mark next stage of Middle Corridor development

Eastbound transport will mark the next stage in the development of the Middle Corridor, also known as the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, Azerbaijan Railways said on Wednesday.

Emil Mammadov, an adviser to the chairman of Azerbaijan Railways, said the company has in recent years moved the Middle Corridor from a conceptual project to a fully operational route, with westbound freight volumes rising steadily.

“This growth is based on concrete steps, including coordination through the Middle Corridor Multimodal joint venture, expanded capacity on the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway, an increased fleet of wagons and containers, construction of new container vessels for the Caspian Sea, and continuous upgrades of ports and infrastructure,” Mammadov said.

Looking ahead to 2026, he said the key challenge would be the creation of stable and predictable eastbound flows rather than further scaling up westbound traffic, adding that European partners would play a decisive role.

He said ongoing dialogue with major European logistics groups such as HHLA, Rhenus Logistics, DB Cargo, MSC and Rail Cargo Group showed growing interest in the corridor, with 2026 expected to turn that interest into tangible eastbound volumes.

Cargo volumes along the Trans-Caspian route are forecast to reach 5.2 million tonnes in 2025, with annual capacity expected to rise to 10 million tonnes by 2027 and 11.4 million tonnes by 2030.