TEHRAN - Head of Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran (PMO) Ali Akbar has said that at least 15 ships to its merchant fleet in the Caspian Sea amid growing trade ties with Russia and other countries located to the north of Iran.
Safaei said that expanding Iran’s northern fleet of commercial vessels has become a priority for the country’s transportation ministry, of which the PMO is a subsidiary.
“Given that the volume of trade with neighboring countries to the north is growing, the first priority for the Ministry is to expand the fleet and to increase the capacity in the Caspian Sea,” said Safaei.
Safaei said that Iran’s Caspian Sea merchant fleet will further expand in the near future with the arrival of new ships from the Volga River.
The announcement comes amid growing shipping activity in the Caspian Sea as Russia and other countries have ramped up their exports and imports via Iran and its southern ports.
Media reports and statements by Iranian authorities show there has been a major surge in trade via the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a route that connects the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean to countries to the north of Iran via the Iranian road and rail transportation network.
Iran has created new infrastructure, including modern port operation systems, in its northern ports to both facilitate cargo transit via the INSTC and to increase its own exports to Russia and other countries.
Last month, Iran and Russia signed a contract to build a key railway along the Caspian Sea that would significantly boost trade via INSTC’s western branch.
Shahriar Afandizadeh, deputy minister of roads and urban development on Sunday revealed that establishing a new port on the Sea of Oman coasts has been put atop the agenda of the ministry.
Referring to the general policies of the 7th Five-Year Socioeconomic and Cultural Development Plan, Afandizadeh said feasibility studies have been conducted for demarcating a new port on the Sea of Oman coasts in the vicinity of Jask oil terminal in addition to the Chabahar Port.
Turning to the significance of the development of the sea economy as emphasized by Leader of the Islamic Revolution and paying attention to it in the general policies of the 7th Development Plan, he said the special attention paid to the development of Makran coasts shows the necessity of establishing a new port on the Sea of Oman coasts, in addition to Chabahar Port, from the technical and economic points of view.
For this purpose, feasibility studies have been conducted by the Ports and Maritime Organization to demarcate the establishment of the new port, he said, noting that construction of the new port has been proposed by the PMO at Mobarak Mount in the vicinity of Jask oil and refinery area.
Road and rail networks will be designed according to the needs of the port in order to facilitate its connection with the territorial and extraterritorial areas, the deputy roads minister added.