A freight train in India took off on its own on Sunday 25 February after the crew momentarily exited the train and left the engine running. The train traveled 70 kilometres, taking 50 freight wagons...Read more
Indian Railways (IR) has broken its record in monthly freight loading. In January, the amount of freight loaded reached 142,7 million tonnes, setting a growth percentage of 6,4 per cent in comparison to January 2023....Read more
Instability caused by the ongoing war in Gaza and Houthi attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea has put the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC) on hold until further notice. India seems to be reassessing its...Read more
rasht-astara railwayThe Rasht-Astara railway line is a key missing link along the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), which aims to connect Russia and India. According to Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development, construction of this...Read more
India is ready to commission another dedicated freight corridor crossing its Northeastern territories. The 1,337-kilometres-long Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) will be operational on 1 November and accommodate 250 freight trains per day between Punjab...Read more
Metal thefts increasingly disrupt Deutsche Bahn’s (DB) freight transportation operations. Thieves are especially interested in removing copper cables, thus causing substantial damage to German railway infrastructure. The damage, in turn, results in significant delays for...Read more
India has the ambition to step closer to Central Asian countries, but direct rail connections from India to Central Asia are unrealistic for mostly geopolitical reasons. Thus, rail-sea intermodal services become the solution, despite the...Read more
A new technology and logistics union is in the making in Russia to foster closer trade and economic ties with countries around the Caspian Sea and Central Asia. The union’s primary purpose will be to...Read more
Indian Railways plan to deploy mixed cargo-passenger wagons, which can accommodate up to six tonnes of freight each. The wagons will use the belly freight concept, which is very popular in air transportation. Production has...Read more
The port of Chabahar is again becoming a core development point for the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). Russia, India and Iran plan more test shipments in the coming months that will include it. However,...Read more
The Russian government has agreed to have Turkmenistan join the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). The addition of Turkmenistan offers an alternative route on the eastern branch of the corridor that would bypass Azerbaijan.Read more
Iran officially joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on 4 July, increasing the current SCO membership to nine. Alongside member states Russia and India, this new membership brings greater potential to the port of Chabahar,...Read more
Russian Railways (RZD) has announced that the International North-South Trade Corridor (INSTC) has the potential to exceed 100 million tons. In terms of rail transport alone, the volume of this corridor increased by 60 per...Read more
The train accident in India (Odisha state) on Friday, 2 June, marks one of the deadliest railway disasters in the country, with at least 288 dead and over 1,000 injured. Officials investigating the accident during...Read more
ANALYSISIndia’s rail freight market is unique in many ways. The country has an established and fully functional network of dedicated freight corridors, double-stack trains and ambitious plans to shift substantial freight volumes on the rail....Read more
Iran is about to complete the construction of a railway section on the Russia-India route. The new section will connect the Iranian Caspian seaport city Bandar Anzali and Rasht. The line is expected to be...Read more
ANALYSISJake Sullivan, the White House National Security advisor, met with his Saudi, Emirati and Indian counterparts and discussed a joint railway project linking the Middle East to India via a railway network crossing Saudi Arabia,...Read more
ANALYSISThe Russo-Indian relations’ development dynamics are increasingly characterised by interdependence and attempts for more engagement. The two countries share plans varying from sea transport to rail freight, joint ventures and payment mechanisms, but not all...Read more
ANALYSISIs the International-North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) still too young to determine its development? Even though the corridor has been in the spotlight for more than a year, it still faces certain limitations affecting its establishment...Read more
In its budget for the coming fiscal year, which in India goes from April to April, the Indian government has allocated only a little over 11 million euros for the development of the Chabahar port....Read more
ANALYSISWhat started as a far-fetched but relatively promising route and developed into Russia’s main diversification corridor is now becoming a hot trend everyone wishes to join. It’s all about the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC)...Read more