Container hub launched in Aktau (Part 2)(3rd para added)A container hub, which is the largest in the Caspian Sea region, has been put into operation at the Aktau seaport, the national railway operator Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) said in a Tuesday press release."The new hub will boost transit capabilities and strengthen Kazakhstan’s position as a key link of the East-West, North-South and other routes. The launch of the facility was marked by the arrival of the 100,000th container from China via the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR)," the press release says.KTZ Express, the multimodal logistics subsidiary of national railway operator Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, told Interfax-Kazakhstan that Aktau Port currently handles 100,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) annually. The new container hub's opening will boost capacity to 240,000 TEUs by December 2025, with a second-phase expansion planned to reach 340,000 TEUs in 2026.The project was implemented by KTZ, China’s Lianyungang Port and Aktau International Commercial Seaport JSC. The general contractor was a consortium led by China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), one of China’s largest state-owned corporations specializing in transport infrastructure and port construction.As previously reported, the container hub will increase the Aktau seaport’s throughput capacity from 140,000 TEUs to 240,000 TEUs. Construction of the hub began in late 2024 and was scheduled for completion in 2025.In addition to the container hub, the Aktau seaport, which is part of KTZ Group, includes a dry bulk terminal with an annual capacity of 2.5 million tonnes, a grain terminal (capable of loading up to 4,000 tonnes of grain per day onto vessels), six oil terminals with a combined annual capacity of 12 million tonnes, and a ferry complex handling 2 million tonnes of cargo per year.Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) is a transport, warehousing and distribution company, which is part of Kazakhstan’s National Wealth Fund Samruk-Kazyna. KTZ operates the country’s railways, the infrastructure of seaports and airports, transportation and warehousing facilities. (ICE ALMATY)

Fonte notizia: INTERFAX