Kazakhstan’s Khorgos special economic zone, a rail gateway into China, could be getting a new multimodal airport. The Kazakh-German Skyhansa consortium signed a framework agreement with the Kazakh transport ministry to that end.
The airport project envisages a freight terminal with rail sidings. It will have an initial processing capacity of 50,000 tonnes per year, but further development should bring that up to 250,000 tonnes in the next seven years.
With the addition of an airport, Kazakhstan hopes for the Khorgos economic zone to become a logistics node that brings together air, rail and road transportation. The total cost of the project is estimated at close to 500 million US dollars, which also includes a passenger terminal and fuel storage facilities.
Rail freight growth in Khorgos
Khorgos is one of the most important border crossings on the China – Europe transport route, the Middle Corridor. In 2024, 8,730 trains passed through Khorgos, for a total of 12,1 million tonnes of freight.
Early data from 2025 indicates substantial growth, reaching year-on-year volume increases of nearly 30% monthly. From 1 July, the maximum number of trains passing through Khorgos on a daily basis has been raised from 14 to 28, likely leading to further growth.
