Iran is planning to build 3,200 kilometres of new rail tracks in order to form nine corridors across the country. In total, the corridors will have a length of approximately 17,000 kilometres. Central Asian countries could get a direct route to the Indian Ocean.
Tehran is aiming at a quick completion of the project to boost its capacity up to 60 million tonnes per year: the country says it will need three to seven years to put the needed infrastructure in place.
Notably, Iran wants to build a rail corridor along its eastern border, close to Pakistan and Afghanistan. That line could give the famously landlocked Central Asian countries access to the Indian Ocean – and earn Iran more transit revenue. A big part of this line is already in place.
INSTC development
Moreover, it wants to create various corridors from the Astara hub at the Azerbaijan border to the Indian Ocean, a further development of the INSTC. The ports to be connected include Bandar-Khomeini, Bushehr, Bandar-Abbas and Chabahar.
On the east – west axis, Iran plans to develop a rail corridor from the Turkmen border towards Razi and Cheshme-Soria on the Turkish border and Khosravi, near Iraq.