Azerbaijan Launches Feeder Service in Black Sea

The Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company (ASCO) will launch a test voyage of a feeder vessel along the Black Sea container route Batumi-Constanta by September 20.

The vessel will sail every 10 days (3 times a month). If cargo volumes increase, the growth in the number of vessels and the regularity of sailings on the line is also expected.

Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, hosted  general meeting of an association of legal entities – the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor International Association.

Rauf Valiyev, chairman of the Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company (ASCO), as well as representatives of railway and sea transport companies from Georgia, Kazakhstan and Romania attended the event.

During the the meeting, the participants discussed and made decision on the creation of a container transport line that will be carried out by the ASCO vessel on the Black Sea between the Georgian port of Batumi and the Romanian port of Constance.

The line will mainly be used for the transit of goods in the directions Europe – China – Europe and Europe – Central Asia – Europe. It is expected that the period of delivery of goods via a container line on the Black Sea to the above mentioned directions will be reduced.

This will result in the increase of the attractiveness of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor) going through the Black Sea and the volume of transit container traffic through Azerbaijan.