Joint ESCAP-OSJD Virtual Meeting of Experts Challenges and Opportunities for International Railway Transport along the Trans-Asian Railway Network

7-8 July 2020

Iranian Railways (RAI)

Railway Transport Bangkok,4-5 Sep. 2017 The Intergovernmental Agreement on the Trans-Asian Railway Network

TAR route-km

118,000 km Islamic Republic of

Party since 3 November 2009 Joint ESCAP Joint

Azerbaijan

Turkmenistan -

OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual Jolfa Bandar-e- Astara Amirabad Razi Bandar-e- Miyaneh Anzali Tehran Qazvin Shahrood Qom Garmsar Kosravi Badrud Arak Chadormalu Esfahan Ardakan Bafq Bandar-Emam Zahedan Khorramshahr Kerman Mirjaveh Bandar Abbas Infrastructure development along TAR network

Launching Tabriz- Mianeh Railway

Joint ESCAP Joint o 7 December 2019

o length of 203 km, - OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual o Double track o 120 km/h (for freight cars) o 160 km/h (for passenger coaches) o Increasing international trades and goods export to , , and Turkey Infrastructure development along TAR network

Launching Qazvin- Rasht Railway Joint ESCAP Joint o On March 5, 2020

o In line with North-South Corridor

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual o With the length of 164 km o Single track o Speed of 120 km/h (for freight cars) o Speed of 160 km/h (for passenger coaches) Rail Freight Transport

Increasing freight transport Joint ESCAP Joint ✓ Increasing the transport of

grain and main goods in April - OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual 2020, up to 3 times more, in comparison with the previous year ✓ Direct transport of goods from ship to train Rail Corridors Commercialization

❑ Cooperation with ECO and ESCAP in Joint ESCAP Joint commercializing project of Kazakhstan-

Turkmenistan- Iran rail corridor (KTI) - OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual ❑ Cooperation with ECO on making operational Isalam Abad-Terhan-Istanbul Corridor Bilateral agreements with railways to increase rail transport

✓ Constructing and activating the rail route of

Joint ESCAP Joint Shamtigh (Iran border) to Rozanak Stataion

(), with the length of 62 km,

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual ✓ Agreements on entering Iranian wagons into Turkmenistan ,

✓ Agreements with Russia on activating the North-South Corridor (East Caspian Sea, Caspian Sea, and West Caspian Sea. Bilateral agreement with China

Joint ESCAP Joint Increasing the running of container trains from China to Iran via the routes of

Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, as many - OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual as 30 sets, since 2015 so far; and from Iran to China (3 trains) Multilateral agreements with railways

✓ Five-party agreement among China-Kazakhstan- Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan-Iran:

Joint ESCAP Joint A five-party protocol on container shipment through China- Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan-Iran to increase the

- volume of rail transport, OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual ✓ Five-Party agreement among Turkey-Iran-Turkmenistan- Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan: To increase consignment transport through Railways, by tariff setting and determining the logistics companies of the countries, November 2019 Multilateral agreement with countries

✓ Six-Party Agreement among Iran-Turkey-Turkmenistan- Joint ESCAP Joint Uzbekistan-Tajikistan-Kazakhstan:

For running of CIS wagons to Turkey through Iran.

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual Rail transport during outbreak of COVID 19

Freight traffic

Joint ESCAP Joint

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual Domestic challenges Iranian railway encountered with the outbreak of COVID 19 Demeduction for steel and mineral cargoes due to the restrictions and • Reduction in the steel and mineral cargoes transport due to the lock

Joint ESCAP Joint down of the mines and workshops with a decrease in production,

• Freight trains movement reduction,

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual

• Revenue and cash flow decline of the freight companies,

• Railway revenue decline due to the locomotives rental charges and rail access charge,

• Railway non-operational revenue decrease,

• Reduction of the freight cars’ maintenance operations,

• Reduction of the freight locomotives’ maintenance operations. Challenges Iranian railway encountered with the outbreak of COVID 19 in international traffic

Joint ESCAP Joint Two rail borders with Turkmenistan, (Sarakhs and Incheh Broun), were locked from March 2020,

now opened

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual

Rail border with Turkey, (Razi), was locked for a while from March 2020, then opened

Rail border with Pakistan, (Mirjaveh), was locked from February 2020, still closed

Rail border with Azerbaijan (Astara border), the only rail border active from the time of Virus Measures taken by RAI to increase rail transport at the time of Corona Virus

➢ Installing wagon disinfecting tunnel at Kapikoy border by TCDD for

Joint ESCAP Joint accepting and dispatching wagons via Razi border

- ➢ Increase of rail transport demand to Turkey from different parts of Iran OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual

➢ Observance of health protocols and personnel health with supplying personal protection equipment

➢ Designing and installing wagon disinfection tunnel over each Broad and normal lines at the railway borders of Iran and Turkmenistan, (Sarakhs, Lotfabad, and Incheh - Borun stations)

➢ All the technical data of disinfection equipment and tunnels at the borders have been delivered to Turkmen Side and the railway borders was reopened on 10 June 2020. Construction of disinfection Tunnel at the Sarakhs Rail Border Construction of disinfection Tunnel at the Incheh Broun Rail Border International transport in the last 3 months (COVID 19 period) compared with the same period before the virus

Border with Turkmenistan (Incheh Broun): -100% Joint ESCAP Joint

Border with Turkmenistan (Sarakhs): -87%

- OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual

Border with Turkmenistan (Lotf Abad): -88%

Border with Pakistan (Mirjaveh): -100%

Border with Turkey (Razi): +143%

Border with Azerbaijan (Astara): +28% Some Proposals to UNESCAP and OSJD o Iran is both member to OSJD and UNESCAP, two important

organizations dealing with rail-related issues, Joint ESCAP Joint

o RAI welcomes the assistance of the international organizations in its - OSJD Virtual Meeting of of Experts MeetingOSJD Virtual measures to have computerized connection with its neighbors (with Turkey for which the work is under way and with Turkmenistan)

o RAI wishes more involvement and close cooperation of international organizations for upgrading the capacity of the border terminals/crossings and equipping the borders to facilitate the international rail traffic,

o Commercialization of the corridors and making them operational is highly demanded and contribution of the international organizations could be effective.

o Thank You For Your Kind Attention