Part of the cargo transported on the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR, also known as the Middle Corridor), which connects China with Europe, is planned to be routed through Ukraine.Tymofii Murakhovskyi, the director of commercial operations and logistics at the Ukrainian Railways joint-stock company (Ukrzaliznytsia), stated this at a meeting of the Exporters' Office.
The CFTS portal reported this, citing the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
According to him, Ukrzaliznytsia has been involved in the project for six months. One of the steps in its implementation is the plan to register a company called UZ Cargo East in Kazakhstan. At the same time, the ferries "Heroes of Plevna" and "Heroes of Shipka," which Ukrzaliznytsia had planned to transfer to the State Property Fund of Ukraine as non-core assets, will be used.
"A meeting of the supervisory board was held, at which it was decided to create a new legal entity, UZ Cargo East, in Kazakhstan. This enterprise is intended to operate in the Middle Corridor from China to Europe via Ukraine," said Murakhovskyi.
According to him, the ferries Heroes of Plevna and Heroes of Shipka are expected to transport container trains traveling from the Caspian ports to Baku and then to the Georgian port of Poti. The ferries will deliver them to Odesa.
"We will become an operator not only of rail transport but also of maritime transport. The ultimate goal is to create a corridor that will provide turnkey services to our customers from China to Europe," Murakhovskyi said.
According to him, the next meeting to discuss the project will be held in two weeks in Baku with the participation of representatives of Ukrzaliznytsia.
Murakhovskyi added that the new transnational multimodal transport corridor project has the support of the governments of China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Georgia.
Although he did not give an approximate date for the launch of the project, Murakhovskyi said that the ferries would be able to carry at least two container trains per day, which would significantly increase the turnover of cargo between China and Europe.
As the CFTS portal reported earlier, Ukrzaliznytsia announced in July 2024 that it planned to transfer control over its two sea ferries to the State Property Fund of Ukraine. "The process of transferring control over the steamships Heroes of Plevna and Heroes of Shipka, along with the equipment and components necessary for their operation, to the State Property Fund of Ukraine is currently underway," Ukrzaliznytsia said at the time. The company added that it was waiting for the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to issue the relevant directive.
Ukrzaliznytsia took over the ferries Heroes of Plevna and Heroes of Shipka at the end of 2015. Until then, the Ukrferry shipping company had leased the two ferries from the state.
This marked the beginning of a long saga concerning the repair and possible use of the ferries by Ukrzaliznytsia. In particular, it was expected that the vessels would be able to provide transportation services on the Chornomorsk-Poti/Batumi line as part of the Trans-Caspian route. Among the options considered was the possibility of transferring the ferries to another company under a bareboat charter agreement. Ultimately, in 2019, Ukrzaliznytsia asked the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure to consider transferring both vessels to another operator, as ferry management is not part of the company's core business.
Now, Ukrzaliznytsia has noted that the ferries have not been damaged by Russian attacks. However, they now require costly repairs, modernization, and the renewal of all necessary permits.
