Iran Railway Capacities Increased by %40
Iran Railway Capacities Increased by %40
Minister of Transport and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami says the capacity of rail lines in the country during the current government’s term has increased by 40 percent

Iran Railway Capacities Increased by %40

IRAN NEWS ECONOMIC DESK

TEHRAN – Minister of Transport and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami says the capacity of rail lines in the country during the current government’s term has increased by 40 percent, adding that the capacity of rail lines would be increased by 60 percent comparing to the past by the end of this government in mid-2021.

Speaking in the inaugural ceremony of exhibition on self-sufficiency in rail industry, Eslami said that an important action has been taken and all rail companies and manufacturers have been encouraged to use the domestic capacity and in these days while Coronavirus has gripped the country, the country witnesses  joining new railways to the railway fleet.

Eslami said that over 1200 wagons and locomotives have been domestically or renovated, and joined the fleet.

Pointing to the national rail, he said that production of domestic –made rail was materialized last year and today, the talks between related bodies for getting more rails are underway.

Eslami said that in the current economic condition and while the country is in economic war, all should take advantage of domestic capacities.

He reiterated that the policy of the country is to expand rail system and soon five provinces will be connected by the railway network.

Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Ardebil, Kurdestan, and part of Northern Khorasan will enjoy railways and north to the south corridor which is the biggest project at the moment aiming at increasing the share of the railway in transferring cargo and passengers, he noted.

Meanwhile in the ceremony Head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (known as RAI) Saeed Rasouli said by completing rail infrastructures like Khaf-Herat railway, Iran would be able to access transit markets with over 35 million tons of annual capacity.

Rasouli underlined Iran’s geopolitical and strategic position which has turned the country into a vital gateway for regional and international trade and said: “We must make the most of this position and these capacities.”

We only have the capacity to transit 18 million tons of goods in the region, a large part of which is transported through sea, he said, adding: “With the development of rail infrastructure, including the Khaf-Herat, Chabahar-Zahedan and Shalamcheh-Basra railway projects, we will access a market of 35 million tons in the region and we must step up our efforts to increase the share of rail transportation in transit.”

“The Khaf-Herat line has a transit potential of nearly two million tons; with the expansion of the rail network in Afghanistan, this capacity will definitely increase exponentially and we can reach much larger markets,” Rasouli said.

Khaf-Herat is part of the Iran-Afghanistan rail corridor. The project started in the fiscal year of 2007-2008, connects Iran’s eastern city of Khaf to Afghanistan’s western city of Ghoryan.

Iran has been following new strategies for increasing the share of transit in its foreign trade basket and the country’s railway network has become the center of the government plans for achieving the said goal.