The volume of rail freight crossing the Kazakh – Chinese border is growing rapidly. In January, it grew by 18 per cent year-on-year. It illustrates a trend that has been ongoing for years: since 2015, the number has grown by 450 per cent. Unsurprisingly, the countries have a seemingly ever-deepening partnership in rail.
January’s rail freight volume between the two countries amounted to 2,8 million tonnes, of which 1,5 million tonnes went through the Dostyk border crossing (up by 12 per cent). The remaining 1,3 million tonnes went through Altynkol, 25 per cent more than January 2024.
Kazakh exports to China grew by 5,5 per cent to 1,1 million tonnes, report Kazakh media
– Metal ores: 652 thousand tonnes (+5 per cent)
– Ferrous metals: 104 thousand tonnes (+77 per cent)
– Petroleum products: 32 thousand tonnes (+50 per cent)
– Other: 215 thousand tonnes (+30 per cent)
Booming freight
Kazakh – Chinese rail freight traffic has been booming in recent years. The latest setback was in 2021, when the volume decreased slightly from 2020 levels. However, there has been steady growth ever since: In 2024, the countries exchanged 32 million tonnes of rail freight.
Not coincidentally, China and Kazakhstan agreed to double the permitted number of trains crossing the border points daily. They will allow 15 daily trains to cross the border into China at the Altynkol – Khorgos checkpoint from 1 March. At the Dostyk – Alashankou crossing, 28 daily trains will be allowed through from 1 July.
In line with the growing rail freight volume between the two countries, there is deepening cooperation between them. Kazakhstan and China are cooperating on the development of a number of terminals around Eurasia, among which are Selyatino near Moscow, the GTS-2 hub near Almaty and the Alyat port in Azerbaijan. Those are scheduled for opening in 2025.
200 million dollar investments with Xi’an Dry Port
Kazakh Railways (KTZ) notably also operates a freight terminal in Xi’an, China: “Thanks to the work of the joint cargo terminal in Xi’an, as a key hub on the TITR [Middle Corridor] route, the volume of transportation last year increased by 33 times”, the company said earlier. “In partnership with the Xi’an Dry Port, a number of international logistics projects are being implemented, the total investment in which exceeds 200 million US dollars.”
Other ongoing projects include a terminal in Budapest, a terminal in Svisloch, Belarus, and the development of the Caspian Aktau port. The first two of those will open in 2026. “An integrated approach and dynamic implementation of projects will allow in 2026 to form a full-fledged network of terminals in the East – West direction, which will be an important step in the development of the country’s transit and transport potential”, KTZ says.
Additionally, Kazakhstan itself can count on a major investment from China. The authorities of border province Xinjiang decided on a one billion yuan (132 million euros) investment. Those are to be spent on a transport-logistical hub in Almaty, like the GTS-2 hub.