Asia-Europe Transport Route may need a tariff arbitrator
February 10, 2018 | 01:13 |249
The first steps of the revival of the Great Silk Road in the format of the modern development of transport communication are simply “fascinating” economists. Even at the initial stage, the implementation of this grandiose project has significant effect on the trade between the continents, shifting the center of gravity of traffic from the aviation sector to the railway area. A few years ago, the railway transportation of Chinese goods through the states of Eurasia to the Old World was considered almost experimental. And today, the German port of Duis-burg, which is one of the world's largest domestic ports, receives 25 trains weekly from the China, which come through the Central Asian region and the Russian Federation. In this regard, experts, mainly European, pass an opinion that, despite the obvious increase in the volume of rail traffic between Asia and Europe, there are certain risks for shippers. According to analysts, the existing tariffs mechanisms enable the states that are along the routes, to raise tariff rates unreasonably. In addition, in order to avoid price disagreements in the future, the states involved in these transportations need to make a common decision to create a single body that will be responsible for tariffs calculating on the routes that cross several countries and for resolving disputable issues that may arise in this area. Experts cite as an example Europe, noting that here tariff regulation is complicated by the need to cross a large number of state borders. The lack of such regulation and tariff differences between the states, hamper the increase in rail freight on the continent, despite the high cost of goods delivery by truck. Turkmenistan was one of the first in the region to put forward a number of initiatives to optimize the transport and transit communication at inter-regional and continental level. The Turkmen side supports the development of coordinated, transparent legal procedures that will facilitate the development of transit freight traffic. According to economists, with the commissioning of a new Turkmen International Sea Port at the Caspian Sea in the near future, the freight turnover between Asia and Europe will increase significantly.Nury AMANOV
