Despite all the negative results of the global financial crisis that began in 2009, world trade is slowly recovering mostly due to the increase of exports. Moreover, during the crisis, the emerging economies in Asia have continued to be the drive of economic recovery worldwide and Eurasian trade now accounts from more than half of the world’s trade. In this context, as a connection platform along the main commercial routes, the Caspian Region is located at the junction of Eurasian trade. Considering the strategic importance the region has for global economy, a series of initiatives were launched with the purpose of “reviving the Silk Road”.
The main objective of the project is to revive the Silk Road by building efficient railway networks and transport corridors with the promise of ensuring regional connectivity and integration. It is very important to develop maritime ports along trade routes in order to join the integrated transport system which forecast a single economic route between Asia and Europe over the next 10 years.
Although the old Silk Road was mainly characterised by land transport, at present the development of a “Maritime Silk Road” is considered vital. The road would cross the Caspian Sea to implement the transport projects included in the Caspian Transit Corridor. These projects were detailed in Railway Pro in the issue of October 2013. In fact, these corridors are aimed at developing an efficient and competitive road-railway-maritime transport system between Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkmenistan. Considering the increase of the economic and social dynamics of the economies in the Caspian Sea area, a strong transport infrastructure between these countries could accelerate Eurasian trade. Nowadays, 10 important Caspian Sea ports, including Aktau, Astrahan and Baku provide significant opportunities not just for national economies, but also for the sustainable development of the region.
Due to its geostrategic position in the South Caucasus and to an impressive economic growth, Azerbaijan is in the centre of the New Silk Road. However, Azerbaijan is a rather isolated country with no land frontier with the countries in Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan). Thus, its geographical position requires the development of an efficient maritime transport through the Caspian Sea so that the state would be considered a vital connection in the supply chain of the Silk Road. In order to meet the needs resulted from trade and cargo transport growth, Azerbaijan has already planned the construction of the new Baku International Sea Trade Port in Alyat, 70km away from Baku at the junction of TRACECA and the North-South corridors.
According to Azerbaijan’s vision for a new regional hub, the Port of Alyat would significantly increase the freight flow and the freight volume transited along the east-west and north-south corridors. Moreover, it is important to underline that the Port of Alyat would not operate as a simple transit corridor, it would be a cross-border point which will include logistics centres and a free economic zone. It is estimated that the Alyat Port will be the largest and most modern port to the Caspian Sea by 2015 with the capacity of serving 20 million tonnes of freight per year.
Consequently, the construction of the new international maritime port in Alyat is really a must for implementing the New Silk Road initiative proposed by TRACECA. Moreover, the Port of Alyat would also intensify the capacity of the Iron Silk Road (Baku – Tbilisi – Kars Corridor) which would enable direct access to the European railway network. Moreover, the Port of Alyat should not be considered as just a segment of the integrated Eurasian transport infrastructure. In conformity with the modernisation of Boyuk Kesik and Baku-Yalama railways and the diversification of the railway network, the Port of Alyat would create its own economy by creating its own hinterland and implementing a free economic zone and by setting an efficient international logistics centre. Required investments are estimated to EUR 210 Million.
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