Kazakhstan: studies possibility of new grain terminal

Astana / KZ. (ami) Umirzak Shukeev, the Vice-Premier of the Republic of Kazakhstan, announced that Kazakhstan explores the possibility of building or purchasing partnership shares of a grain terminal in one of the ports of the Azov and Black Seas at the territory of the Russian Federation.

He noticed that the absence of the direct access to the sea ports became rather serious barrier on the way of supplying of grain volumes from Kazakhstan on world markets. Due to various transit tariffs only, each tonne of grains from Kazakhstan increases own price by 50 USD. Shukeev also noticed that in view of the fact, Kazakhstan started creating own export infrastructure, which will allow directly coming on the large-scale sale markets.

In particular, Kazakhstan builds and widens the capacities of grain terminals in the Caspian Sea – in the ports of Aktau, Baku, Amirabad. Shukeev noticed that in the current time, the capacities of these infrastructures allow to ship 50 to 55 thousand tonnes of grains to Iran, Azerbaijan per month. Kazakhstan also studies the practicability of building the grain terminal on the parity conditions with Iran partners in the port Imam Khomeini with the access to the countries of the Persian Gulf.

In the ports Aktau and Amirabad Kazakhstan also plans to involve grain terminals for Kazakh wheat coming out within the swap-operations on the market of third countries through southern ports of Iran.

Shukeev reminded that in 2011 at the border with China Kazakhstan plans to begin the construction of the railway grain terminal. Shukeev noticed that last year, as it is known, the Republic of Kazakhstan started building the elevator complex in the South-Western part of the country at Beyneu railway station, as a result Kazakhstan will provide the necessary conditions for increasing the exports of Kazakh grains to Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.

The government also considers the possibility of joint building of railway high-way from the board of the Republic of Kazakhstan through Turkmenistan, Iran with coming to the ports of the Indian Ocean (source: agrimarket.info).