News / Russian Railways looks to reorientation to regain lost volumes

© DiegoFiore

Russian Railways is continuing to reorient operations as more sanctions take hold, and its first-quarter figures show the effort may be working, with it regaining some lost ground.

Following the Russian government’s decision to invade Ukraine, the country’s rail container volumes fell off a cliff, with a 15.8% full-year decline. But efforts by Russian Railways to shift its direction of trade appear to at least be reducing its volume deficit.

The operator reportedly posted an 8.5% year-on-year improvement in container trade over the three months to April, carrying more than 2.3m teu, with loaded container volumes up 13.9%.

Much of the uptick – which still leaves it trailing pre-invasion numbers – has been driven by increased volumes between Russia and the wider Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) countries of China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

CEO Oleg Belozerov said the focus was on growing SCO connections, after recording an 8.1%, or 70m tonne, upturn in trade on these routings, to 202m tonnes.

Mr Belozerov added: “We are interested in creating a permanent communication mechanism that would allow the exchange of national infrastructure development plans and best practices to eliminate bottlenecks. Such a mechanism could eventually become a tool for improving cross-border connectivity of the SCO rail network.”

Its reorientation stepped up this year with MoUs with operators in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, the addition of services to India and the UAE and winning approval to commence construction on a China-Russia bridge to cut 2,000km from present routes.

Added to this is the new Iran-Russia partnership, which will see the two finance and construct a missing piece of the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

Formed between India, Iran and Russia at the start of the millennium, the INSTC has also seen an increase in volumes over the past 15 months, but efforts to bolster ties with Iran have been scuppered by a lack of track between Astara and Sarakhs. The two countries will finance the laying of more than 160km of track along the Caspian to the border at Astara between Azerbaijan and Iran.

Sources have told The Loadstar that Russian Railways is banking on the reorientation offering volumes comparable with those lost via sanctions – but they were sceptical. Ukraine’s president Zelensky has announced a new raft of sanctions that will remain in effect for the next 10 years, regardless of whether the war continues.