Kazakhstan looks to raise 40 bln euros in next five years for transport infrastructure projects

ASTANA. Jan 30 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan aims to raise 40 billion euros of investment in the next five years to carry out large transport infrastructure projects, the Transport Ministry said in a press release on Tuesday.

Kazakh Transport Minister Marat Karabayev presented projects costing 40 billion euros at the Global Gateway forum in Brussels.

Kazakhstan plans in the next five years to upgrade 4,700 km of transport routes and repair the highways that are part of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR). To finance the projects, Kazakhstan intends to attract investments as part of the Global Gateway initiative and invites European contractors to participating in Kazakhstan's projects for motor roads construction, the minister said.

Also, Kazakhstan will build 1,300 km of new railways and upgrade the existing railroads so as to greatly increase throughput capacity of the transport corridor linking Asia and the European Union, Karabayev said.

Kazakhstan plans to put 22 of its airports under management of foreign investors to support development of the civil aviation sector and to create a continental transit hub in the republic.

In order to strengthen its maritime fleet and create a container hub at the Aktau seaport, Kazakhstan will offer investors 171 hectares for the expansion of cargo handling infrastructure. In addition, the Aktau and Kuryk seaports may be put under trust management on ship-or-pay terms.

Karabayev suggested that Kazakhstan should be used as the main transit route between Europe and Asia.

The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) is an international transport corridor that runs through China, Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and further to Turkey and European countries. The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is part of the corridor.