Russia, Iran aiming to start construction of Rasht-Astara railway in 2027

ASTANA. Oct 15 (Interfax) - Russia and Iran hope to begin construction work on the Rasht-Astara railway line in northern Iran in 2027 and complete it within three years, OJSC Russian Railways (RZD) First Deputy CEO Sergei Pavlov said.

"[Construction is expected to start] next year," Pavlov told an Interfax correspondent on the sidelines of the 8th New Silk Way International Transport and Logistics Business Forum on Thursday.

He said that construction was expected to be complete within three years in accordance with the conditions of the intergovernmental agreement.

"It [the project] is being implemented, and surveying work is already in full swing there. It began at the start of this year, then there was a pause due to the military action, and now it has been fully resumed," Pavlov said.

As reported, Russia and Iran began carrying out surveying work for the Rasht-Astara railway line in May last year. The plans involve building a railway track 162 kilometers in length and building eight new stations, 56 trestles, 73 bridges and 30 overpasses. The section will form part of the International North-South Transport Corridor.

The total cost of the project is 1.6 billion euros, of which Russia will provide 1.3 billion euros. Once completed, the railway alone is expected to carry at least 15 million tonnes of freight a year.

The International North-South Transport Corridor links northern Europe with states in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean via Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Russia, Iran and India signed an agreement on the creation of a multimodal corridor in 2002, and it now has 12 participating countries. The corridor comprises three routes - a western route along the western coast of the Caspian Sea, an eastern route along the eastern coast and the trans-Caspian route through the Caspian Sea.