Issues of reducing time for transit transportation were discussed at the port of Baku

The representative of Baku port familiarized the participants of the meeting with the activities of the port of Baku, its capacity, statistical data on transported goods, as well as the prospects for the development of the port.

Mr. Assavbayev invited the meeting participants to consider diversification of the options for transporting cargo vehicles to eliminate the possibility of their congestion in the seaport and reduce the time of cargo transportation.

It is proposed to pay special attention to the possibility of using universal vessels for the transportation of semi-trailers and the potential of using connectors for their loading and unloading on the vessel. «In the future, such connectors can also be used for the transportation of goods in rail and maritime traffic, including through the Caspian Sea, in block trains» - the Secretary General noted.

Representatives of Baku International Sea Trade Port CJSC and Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company CJSC informed about the work done in recent years to reduce the processing time at the port and proposed to work out the issue of reducing the time for waiting and processing at the port of Kuryk to minimize the duration of the vessel's stay in this port.
 
The meeting participants also discussed issues that impede the timely dispatch of cargo vehicles and noted that in 20-30% of cases, delays are associated with incorrect processing of documents by road carriers or the absence of some of them.
 
During the meeting, it was also noted that in October -December 2023, there was a deterioration in weather conditions, which negatively affected the operation of ports and maritime transport, resulting in the congestion of cargo vehicles. The meeting participants also emphasized the importance of taking coordinated measures between the Caspian ports to increase the efficiency of transportation.

In addition, the sides highlighted the importance of introducing a single payment for carriers according to the practice of seaports on the Black Sea to collect a single fee from them for both the services of a shipping company and for the services of seaports.

Mr. Azer Aliyev also proposed to hold meetings under the auspices of TRACECA with the participation of the ports of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan, including with the involvement of government agencies, to discuss the issues of cargo transportation in the Caspian Sea in detail.
 
In his turn, Secretary General Mr. Assavbayev agreed and also proposed to jointly prepare a corresponding action plan. He also expressed his wish to place, if possible, the number of vehicles waiting in line at the port on the website of the port of Baku, following the example of customs.

At the end of the meeting, all participants conceptually agreed to continue working together, including with the involvement of customs authorities, to develop new approaches regarding cargo transportation by semi-trailers and eliminate existing organizational bottlenecks.

In addition, some participants headed to the waiting area for cargo vehicles to assess the current situation and questioned drivers. According to information received from drivers, today the waiting period in the port is about 3-4 days, from the moment of arrival at the port, a queue number ensuring the regulation of the loading order on the vessel is assigned to cargo vehicles.