Middle Corridor.net Apply

From the world's factory
to the Mediterranean.

One line from China's rail gateway at Khorgos across Kazakhstan, the Caspian, the Caucasus and Türkiye to Trieste and Barcelona. Independent forwarders run every handover. Founding phase: General Logistic Group, Istanbul, is the member for Türkiye. 20 of 21 memberships are open.

Apply for membership Fly the corridor

Founded by Gökhan Köse · KoeSEO

01 · CN · KZ · Xi'an to the steppe

Out of the world's factory

China makes 27.4 % of the world's manufacturing. Trains from Xi'an cross the Hexi Corridor and enter Kazakhstan at Khorgos, then run the longest leg across the steppe to the Caspian ports of Aktau and Kuryk.

+22%
Route volume Jan to Aug 2026, after −8 % in 2025
KZ Ministry of Transport · Trend
+55%
East-west transit, same period
KZ Ministry of Transport · Trend
8 memberships · open · CN 5 · KZ 3
02 · AZ · The Caspian

A crossing the region builds together

Rail cars and containers roll onto the ferry in Kazakhstan and land at Alat, south of Baku. In 2024 the Turkic states agreed on scheduled block trains for the corridor. The World Bank expects Caspian volumes to triple by 2030.

105kTEU
Through the Port of Baku at Alat in 2025
Azernews · 07/2026
+60%
Uzbek cargo via Aktau and Kuryk, 2025
Times of Central Asia
9 memberships · open · AZ 3 · UZ, TM, KG 2 each
03 · GE · The Caucasus

Georgia, the Black Sea gate

Rail through Georgia to the Black Sea ports of Poti and Batumi, or on via Baku–Tbilisi–Kars straight into Türkiye. The gauge changes once, at Akhalkalaki. Since March 2026, TITR has halved eastbound rail rates from Batumi and Poti.

+173%
Container transit through Georgia, H1 2025
1TV Georgia
4.6Mt
Middle Corridor transit through Georgia, 2025
PMCG Research
1 membership · open
04 · TR · Anatolia

Türkiye, the middle of Eurasia

A complementary production and distribution base: Europe's fifth-largest manufacturing base outside Russia, and Italy's first partner in sea freight by volume. From Pendik, Ro-Ro ferries sail to Trieste six times a week. Eastbound, TITR has cut rail rates from Türkiye by a third since March 2026.

826km
Baku–Tbilisi–Kars rail line, open since October 2017
Astana Times
1 membership · taken by General Logistic Group
05 · The whole line

One line. Six handovers.

TITR's rail tariffs run to Istanbul, Derince and Mersin. From Pendik, Ro-Ro reaches Trieste in about 64 hours, from Mersin in about 69, on to Milan and Barcelona. Six handovers, run by 21 members from ten countries. The membership for Türkiye is taken.

1of 21
Memberships taken in the founding phase
See open memberships
01/11The economic space

Four roles. One figure each.

China is the world's factory. The Turkic states carry the line from Khorgos across the Caspian, Georgia bridges it to the Black Sea and Anatolia, and Türkiye is Eurasia's complementary production and distribution base at continental middle distance. Italy and Spain open it to the Mediterranean and onward to North Africa.

China · the world's factory27.4%of the world's manufacturing value added, 2025World Bank, own calculation

Turkic states · the backbone161mpeople in the five member states of the Organization of Turkic States, USD 2.15 tn output, 2025World Bank, own sum · MFA Türkiye

Türkiye · complementary production and distribution base229bn USDmanufacturing value added, 2024. The EU's fifth-largest trade partnerWorld Bank · European Commission

Italy · Spain · the Mediterranean opening317k Ro-Rounits through Trieste in 2025, up 7.4 % with new lines to Türkiye. In Barcelona's container trade, Türkiye ranks thirdPort of Trieste · Port of Barcelona

Barcelona Milan Istanbul Aktau Khorgos
  • IT~64 hoursRo-Ro Pendik–Trieste, six sailings a weekDFDS
  • TR54 %of Türkiye–EU traffic goes by Ro-RoShippax
  • GE1 → 5 Mta year on Baku–Tbilisi–Kars after the upgradeReport.az
  • AZ123k TEUPort of Baku, 2026 forecast, expanding to 260,000Trend
  • KZ12 → 60train pairs a day, Dostyk–Moyynty second track, 2025Fergana
On the line: one figure per country, from Khorgos to TriesteFergana · Trend · Report.az · Shippax · DFDS
Middle distance · transit times compared

Ten days from China's border, on TITR's tariff. Under three to Italy.

69hours by Ro-Ro from Mersin to Trieste

Three legs with three different start points: the bars compare time on each leg, not one shipment. The rail time is the delivery time printed in the TITR tariff. Kazakhstan's Ministry of Transport puts runs from the Chinese border at 13–17 days today. The gap sits at the handovers: ferry capacity, border crossings, repeated handling.

Shenzhen → RotterdamSea via Suez · UNCTAD

≈ 31 days

Altynkol → IstanbulRail, Caspian feeder via Alat, Kars · 6,180 km · TITR tariff 2026

10 days · tariff

Mersin → TriesteRo-Ro · DFDS schedule

69 hours
UNCTAD Review of Maritime Transport 2024 · TITR tariff 2026/3 · DFDS Mersin–Trieste schedule · Astana Times 10/2026
4.1Mt
20252022 · 1.5

Freight on the Trans-Caspian route through Kazakhstan in 2025, up from 1.5 Mt in 2022

Astana Times 03/2026 · 2022 figure
77kTEU
26 % of the 300k target for 2029

Containers on the route in 2025, up 36 %. Target 300,000 TEU by 2029

Astana Times 03/2026 · +36 %
13–17days
38 days before

Delivery time today from the Chinese border to the Georgian and Turkish ports, Kazakh Ministry of Transport

Astana Times 10/2026
€10bn
of €18.5 bn needed, EU–EBRD study

Pledged by European and international financiers for Trans-Caspian transport, January 2024

European Commission
Where the cargo comes from

Grain, metals, vehicles and the trade that pulls them west.

01 · Grain11 Mt

exported by Kazakhstan's railway in 2025, a ten-year high. Shipments to Azerbaijan tripled, volumes to Black Sea ports rose 49 %.

Astana Times · 01/2026
02 · Vehicles629,000

vehicles built in 2025: passenger cars in Uzbekistan, all vehicle types in Kazakhstan, a record year for Kazakhstan.

UZ457,900KZ171,144
Kun.uz · KAO
03 · EU trade€55.6 bn

EU trade with the five Central Asian states in 2024, double 2021. Raw-materials partnerships with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

2024€55.6 bn2021€27.9 bn
European Commission (DG Trade)
04 · TürkiyeUSD 16.9 bn

Türkiye's trade with the member states of the Organization of Turkic States in 2025.

202516.9 bn20020.87 bn
Turkish Trade Ministry · AA
02/11Logistics

Rail, sea, rail. Every handover is a business.

From Dostyk and Khorgos across Kazakhstan to Aktau and Kuryk, by ferry or feeder to Alat, by rail through Azerbaijan and Georgia to Poti and Batumi or via Baku–Tbilisi–Kars into Türkiye, to Istanbul, Derince and Mersin. Tonnage dipped in 2025 while containers grew 36 %: the mix is shifting from bulk to boxes.

  • +22 %freight Jan–Aug 2026, more than 3 million tonnesReport.az · 09/2026
  • USD 950 · 1,250TITR 2026 rail tariff Dostyk → Aktau, loaded 20' and 40', 3,095 km in 114 hoursTITR Association
  • 10 daysTITR 2026 tariff Altynkol → Istanbul via Alat and Kars, 6,180 km, USD 2,563 · 3,861 loaded 20' and 40'. Altynkol → Mersin also in 10 days, further relations end in DerinceTITR tariff 2026/3 · 2026/5
  • −33 %TITR discount since 11 March 2026 on container freight eastbound from Türkiye to Kazakhstan, Central Asia and ChinaTITR client information
  • 3 → 12container feeders in regular Caspian service during 2026Trend · 10/2026
  • 80 %typical ferry load out of Kazakhstan: the Caspian dropped more than half a metre in five yearsTimes of Central Asia · 09/2026
  • 5–6 %of the northern rail route's capacity. Not a replacement for the sea or the north, but the alternative that stays openFREE Network · 10/2026
Tonnage −8 % in 2025. Containers +36 %.Index, 2022 = 100 · through Kazakhstan
1002003002022202320242025 Tonnage 4.12 Mt Containers 77k TEU TEU 2023 n/a
Tonnage 4.12 MtContainers 77k TEU
Astana Times 03/2026 · 02/2026 · 02/2023
03/11Infrastructure

Built section by section. Most of it since 2025.

The bottlenecks are border yards, ports, ferries and the Bosporus. A World Bank guarantee of USD 846m and an AIIB co-guarantee of USD 564m back Kazakhstan's railway alone. The EU and EBRD put the total need on the Trans-Caspian network at about €18.5 bn.

CompletedUnder constructionPlanned
20252026202720282029Today · 10/2026
  1. Completed
  2. 09/2025Dostyk–Moyynty second track836 km, from 12 to 60 train pairs a dayFergana
    09/2025
  3. 06/2025Aktau container hubPhase 1 for 140,000 TEU, 240,000 with phase 2 in 2027–28CHEC
    06/2025
  4. 12/2025Georgian Railway main lineCapacity from 27 to 48 Mt a yearCivil.ge
    12/2025
  5. 05/2026Baku–Tbilisi–KarsFinal acceptance, 1 to 5 Mt a yearReport.az
    05/2026
  6. 10/2026Çerkezköy–Kapıkule153 km towards the Bulgarian borderRailway Gazette
    10/2026
  7. Under construction
  8. target 2026Moyynty–KyzylzharAbout 322 km, cuts 149 km off the routeAstana Times
    target 2026
  9. target 2026Aktau dredgingTo 6–7 m, sea freight 10–15 % cheaperAstana Times
    target 2026
  10. target 2027Bakhty–AyagozThird rail link to ChinaPrime Minister of Kazakhstan
    target 2027
  11. under wayDivriği–Kars electrification660 km, 0.75 to 20 Mt a yearWorld Bank
    under way
  12. target 2029Kars–Iğdır–Dilucu224 km to Nakhchivan, 15 Mt a yearDaily Sabah
    target 2029
  13. Planned
  14. no dateIstanbul rail bypass127 km, EBRD considering up to €500mReport.az
    no date
  15. target 2029Anaklia deep-sea portState-led after the consortium leftInterfax
    target 2029
  16. no datePort of Baku stage 225 Mt and up to 500,000 TEUPort of Baku · Trend
    no date

Gauge changes on the line: 1,435 → 1,520 mm at the eastern border, 1,520 → 1,435 mm at Akhalkalaki in Georgia. World Bank

04/11Digital

Freight moves faster than its papers. That is changing.

The World Bank found the corridor's IT systems neither uniformly applied nor integrated. Now a fibre cable crosses the Caspian, customs platforms talk to each other, and eTIR and e-CMR replace the paper, country by country.

Before8 h
Now30 min
One square = 10 minutes Transit processing at Kazakh customs · Astana Times · 10/2026
  • 07/2026first eTIR transports across the Caspian between three countriesIRU
  • e-CMRin force in Türkiye, Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan in the final stage of joiningTrend
  • e-docsTITR's work plan for 2026, approved on 24.04.2026, provides for electronic documents with digital signatureReport.az
  • 1stmultimodal through bill of lading on the route, Zhengzhou–Baku, 26 August 2026. Most legs are still sold and documented separatelyChina-CEEC
Aktau Sumgait
Trans-Caspian cable400TbpsPlanned capacity, 380 km on the seabed, launched 15 October 2026Interfax · Astana Times
05/11Why a network

Frame and route are in place. The cargo needs a trusted layer.

“Space, time and distance inevitably impose a certain distribution of production.”

“Mekan / zaman / mesafe fiziksel gerçekliği her halükarda üretimin belirli bir dağılımını zorunlu kılmaktadır.”

Göktuğ, General Logistic Group, Istanbul · member for Türkiye

Frame
Organization of Turkic StatesThe political frame

Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Türkiye on this line, with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. At the Bishkek summit in 2024 the heads of state instructed their ministries to establish scheduled block trains along the Middle Corridor.

MFA Türkiye · Bishkek Declaration, para. 42
Route
TITR AssociationRailways and ports run the route

Founded by seven railways and ports of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia, at work since 2017. Today 8 regular and 19 associate members from 11 countries agree the route's tariffs. Middle Corridor Multimodal, registered by the Kazakh, Azerbaijani and Georgian railways in 2023, runs container services on it; China Railway Container signed on in November 2025.

TITR history · 2017 · regular · associate members · tariffs · Middle Corridor Multimodal
Cargo
Middle Corridor NetworkIndependent forwarders move the cargo

The work at Khorgos, Aktau, Alat, Poti, Kars, Pendik and Mersin is done by local independent forwarders. A fixed number of members per country, one handover standard from Khorgos to Trieste and Barcelona. The network works with TITR's tariffs and members, it does not replace them.

06/11How a shipment moves

Six handovers. Which one is yours?

A container from the Kazakh border to Trieste changes mode three times and rail gauge once, at Akhalkalaki. Every handover is where time and money are lost: a wagon waits days for a ferry slot in Aktau. A country's member forwarders run its handovers.

  1. 01 · KZKhorgosContainer crane moving a box between two trains at a border dry port at night

    Gauge change from 1,435 to 1,520 mm at the eastern gate, then rail across the Kazakh steppe.

  2. 02 · KZAktau · KurykRail ferry with its ramp lowered at a Caspian quay at night

    Ferry slot on the Caspian, the leg with the tightest capacity.

  3. 03 · AZAlatFreight train on the quay of a Caspian container port at night

    Discharge, transit formalities, rail booking towards Georgia.

  4. 04 · GEAkhalkalakiFreight train in a mountain rail yard under moonlight

    Back to 1,435 mm on Baku–Tbilisi–Kars, or on to Poti and the Black Sea.

  5. 05 · TRPendik · MersinTrailers rolling onto a Ro-Ro ship at an Istanbul terminal at night

    Rail across Anatolia to the Ro-Ro terminals at Pendik on the Asian shore of Istanbul and at Mersin on the Mediterranean.

  6. 06 · IT · ESTrieste · SèteRo-Ro ship and intermodal wagons on an Adriatic pier at night

    Ro-Ro to Trieste from Pendik six times a week in about 64 hours, from Mersin three times a week in about 69 hours, rail to Milan. For Spain, Ro-Ro to Sète and road to Barcelona.

Pictures are AI-generated illustrations, not photographs of the named sites.

Sailings to Trieste: DFDS Pendik–Trieste · DFDS Mersin–Trieste schedule · Port of Trieste

Transit time · Chinese border to the Georgian and Turkish ports

Promised 13–17 days. Delivered 14 to 60.

43days between the promised 17 and the slowest shipments

Other benchmarks

Earlier runKazakh Ministry of Transport

38

Official run todayKazakh Ministry of Transport

13–17

Possible on this routeEBRD estimate

≈ 18

Target, KazakhstanStable, to Georgian and Turkish ports

10–12

Target, European UnionTrans-Caspian route

≤ 15

What shipments have takenEBRD

14–60up to 43 days nobody can plan
Astana Times 10/2026, Kazakh Ministry of Transport · Times of Central Asia 08/2026, EBRD and EU
Membership along the line · founding phase

21 memberships. One taken.

20 open in nine countries. Türkiye is taken by General Logistic Group, Istanbul. Tap an open square to apply.

    1. CNXi'anOrigin1,435 mm
    CN5 openThe world's factory
    1. 01 · KZKhorgosRail → rail1,435 → 1,520 mm
    2. 02 · KZAktau · KurykRail → ferryTightest capacity
    KZ3 openTransit hub of the Middle Corridor
    1. 03 · AZAlatFerry → rail1,520 mm
    AZ3 openAt the Trans-Caspian crossing
    1. 04 · GEAkhalkalakiRail → rail1,520 → 1,435 mm
    GE1 openOn the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway
    1. 05 · TRPendik · MersinRail → Ro-Ro1,435 mm
    TRtakenCentre of the corridor
    General Logistic Group
    Istanbul
    1. 06 · IT · ESTrieste · SèteRo-Ro → rail, road1,435 mm
    IT · ES1 open eachThe Mediterranean link

Corridor links

UZ2 open
TM2 open
KG2 open

Founding Charter §3 · every member at every handover

  1. Documents before arrival
  2. Status at every handover
  3. One named contact per member and leg
Middle Corridor Network, Founding Charter §3 and §10, draft · gauges and modes as above
What operators publish

Freight volumes and their fastest runs. Much less on average port waits and schedule reliability.

Times of Central Asia 08/2026
What members publish

The time of every leg they run, and a status at every handover.

Founding Charter §3 and §11, draft

This gap is our business.

07/11Membership

Four steps to membership. No fee in the founding phase.

Every membership is granted on record, not by listing. This is the path from the application form to your company's name on the founding charter.

  1. 01Apply

    Country, company, the city and corridor legs you run, a work e-mail.

  2. 02References

    From shippers and carriers on the corridor.

  3. 03Visit

    A visit before the vote.

  4. 04Vote

    By the existing members. In the founding phase, the founding members decide.

  5. 05Member

    You sign the founding charter. Your company stands on the line.

20 of 21 memberships open · nine countriesApply for membership
Middle Corridor Network, Founding Charter §2 and §12, draft
08/11Founding charter · draft

Members, not listings.

Global networks list thousands of offices in every country. This network admits a fixed number of independent forwarders per country along one corridor, and holds them to one way of working. The charter is a draft, to be adopted by the founding members.

Middle Corridor Network Founding Charter

Draft · not yet adopted
  1. §1

    Membership per country

    21 members in ten countries. Five in China, the world's factory. Three in Kazakhstan, the transit hub of the Middle Corridor. Three in Azerbaijan, at the Trans-Caspian crossing. One in Georgia, on the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway. Two each in Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan, the corridor links. One in Türkiye, the centre of the corridor. One each in Italy and Spain, the Mediterranean link. Where a country has several members, they split cities or legs.

  2. §2

    Admission on record

    References from shippers and carriers on the corridor, a visit, and a vote of the existing members. No fee in the founding phase.

  3. §3

    One handover standard

    Documents before arrival, status at every handover, one named contact per member and leg.

  4. §4

    Paid on time

    Invoices between members settled within an agreed term. Disputes go to the members first, not to the market.

  5. §5

    A voice on the corridor

    Forwarders can join the TITR Association as individual members, with an advisory vote and a recommendation from a member or its executive body (Membership Regulation of 29 September 2023, clauses 3.4 and 6.1.4). The network prepares these applications together.

  6. §6

    At the corridor congresses

    Members attend the corridor's congresses in Istanbul, Ankara and Baku as one delegation.

Signatures
  1. General Logistic GroupTR · Istanbul · signed
  2. 20 of 21 memberships open · nine countries
09/11For the forwarder in Aktau

What membership means. In practice.

Draft terms of the founding phase. The founding members fix them before the second member is confirmed.

Founding Charter · continued

Terms of the founding phase

Draft
  1. §7

    What it costs

    No fee in the founding phase. The fee after that is set by the founding members and published before anyone is asked to pay it.

    An individual membership in the TITR Association (§5) is separate and complements this one: USD 10,000 to join and USD 17,984 a year in 2026, with an advisory vote.

    TITR membership fees 2026 · Membership Regulation, clause 3.4
  2. §8

    Which cargo

    Shipments that a member moves across your leg are handed to you first. In the founding phase there is no volume promise.

  3. §9

    Getting paid

    Invoices between members are settled within an agreed term. A member who does not pay loses membership.

  4. §10

    Documents

    CIM/SMGS consignment note across the 1,435 and 1,520 mm rail systems, FIATA FBL for door-to-door, documents sent before the cargo arrives.

  5. §11

    Transit times

    13–17 days from the Chinese border to the Georgian and Turkish ports by the Kazakh count, about 64 hours by Ro-Ro from Pendik to Trieste. Members measure each leg and publish their own times.

  6. §12

    Who decides, who is behind

    Admission is decided by the founding members. Founder: Gökhan Köse, KoeSEO. Member for Türkiye: General Logistic Group, Istanbul.

10/11Where the corridor meets

The corridor's calendar. Next departures.

DateEventCityDeparts
  1. ULUK · Logistics Corridors CongressAnkaraNext
  2. 13th Summit of the Organization of Turkic StatesAnkaraUpcoming
  3. logitrans · International Transport Logistics ExhibitionIstanbul · YenikapıUpcoming
  4. LojiDer · 1st International Logistics Congress FeaturedIstanbul · Marriott AtaşehirFeatured
  5. UTİKAD · 40th anniversaryIstanbulUpcoming
  6. transport logisticMunichUpcoming

Azerbaijan chairs the Organization of Turkic States until the Ankara summit; Kazakhstan chairs the Union of Turkic Chambers of Commerce and Industry in 2026. Past this autumn: TransLogistica and New Silk Way Forum, Astana, 14–16 Oct 2026 · Black and Caspian Freight Forum, Baku, 7–9 Sep 2026 OTS summit: Directorate of Communications · logitrans: organiser

11/11Apply for membership

Run a leg of the corridor?

Independent forwarders with their own record on the corridor apply for membership in their country. The founding members decide.

Write directly: apply@middlecorridor.net

1Country