Construction of EU-China transport corridor via Iran

The transport ministers and representatives of the member states of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the creation of a new transport corridor from China to Europe via Iran, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan in Tashkent on Thursday.

The MoU was signed on the sidelines of the 12th meeting of ECO transport ministers which was held in the capital of Uzbekistan with the participation of Iran’s Deputy Transport Minister Shahriar Afandizadeh, IRIB reported.

The unification of tariffs on transportation procedures and border processes will be implemented within the framework of the mentioned MoU, according to which, a significant share of the transit volume from China to Europe can be carried out via Iran's east-west transit route.

At the meeting, the ECO transport ministers also exchanged views on strengthening transport communications in the ECO region.

The need to finance infrastructural projects in the ECO region with the participation of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), completing the missing rail and road links and strengthening the regional corridors including Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul and Almaty-Tehran-Istanbul and also east-west corridors for connecting China to Europe as well as Caspian Sea routes were among the other issues discussed at the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, Afandizadeh expounded on the Iran Road transport initiative and emphasized that all countries in the region will be able to have safe and cheap access to other destinations via Iran using the initiative.

The 13th Meeting of Transport Ministers of the ECO will be held in Tehran in 2024.

 

Iran’s annual trade with ECO members reaches US$20.5 billion

According to Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), country’s trade with the members of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) reached U$20.5 billion in the calendar year 1401.

According to Mohammad Rezvani-Far, Iran exported US$13 billion worth of commodities to the member nations, while the imports from these were reported at US$7.5 billion.

Referring to the trade potentials of ECO member countries in various fields, such as rail and land transport, common borders, as well as territorial and population size, Rezvani-Far said the volume of commercial exchanges with ECO members should be more than this figure.

“IRICA is fully prepared to take the necessary measures for increasing the volume of trade and transit exchanges with ECO members in order to achieve the organization’s goals set according to the ECO agreement,” he said.

The official underlined the development of transit ties with ECO members as a way of boosting trade exchanges with the mentioned countries.

“Iran has many customs agreements and memorandums with ECO member countries, and in order for these agreements to be operational in line with the provisions of the ECO agreement, it is suggested that the ECO secretariat announces the necessary measures needed to be taken with the cooperation of the members,” he noted.

Iran and ECO members traded more than 23.723 million tons of goods worth US$11.71 billion during the Iranian calendar year 1400, of which the share of exports was 18.419 million tons of goods worth US$6.890 billion and the share of imports from these countries was 5.312 million tons worth US$4.819 billion.

Petroleum products, dairy products, foodstuff, fresh and dried fruits, juices and citrus fruits, carpets, saffron, fish, caviar, ornamental aquatic products, various stones, construction equipment, clothing, industrial equipment, bags and shoes, medicine, and health supplies, as well as plastic products, were Iran’s main exported items to ECO members last year, while basic goods, industrial machinery, raw materials for production, and medical supplies and medicine, were the top imported goods from ECO member states.

The Economic Cooperation Organization or ECO is an Asian political and economic intergovernmental organization that was founded in 1985 in Tehran by the leaders of Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey.

 

Iran’s growing trade with ECO member countries

Iran’s trade with the members of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) exceeded US$10.447 billion in the first eight months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-November 22) to register a 44% increase year on year (YoY), the spokesman of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) said.

According to Ruhollah Latifi, the volume of trade with the mentioned countries also increased by 34 percent in comparison to the previous year’s same eight months, IRNA reported.

As reported, during the mentioned period Iran traded over 21,778,387 tons of commodities worth US$10.447 billion with ECO member countries including Turkey, Afghanistan, the Republic of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Iran exported 18.631 million tons of commodities worth over US$6.823 billion to the said nations in the mentioned period.

He said major export destinations of the Iranian goods in the said union were Turkey with about US$3.767 billion of imports, Afghanistan with US$1.27 billion, Pakistan with US$764.389 million, and Azerbaijan with US$335.843 million.

As reported, the Islamic Republic’s export to ECO members increased by 46% and 54% as compared to the figures for the previous year in terms of weight and value, respectively.

Meanwhile, the country imported 3,147,332 tons of goods valued at over US$3.623 billion from the ECO member countries, with Turkey, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan being the top sources of imported goods.

The value of Iranian imports from the ECO union also increased by 28% as compared to the previous year’s same time span, the official said.

According to Latifi, more than 23.723 million tons of goods worth US$11.71 billion were traded between Iran and the ECO member countries during the previous Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), of which the share of exports was 18.419 million tons of goods worth US$6.890 billion and the share of imports from these countries was 5.312 million tons worth US$4.819 billion.

The value of Iran’s non-oil trade during the first eight months of the current year stood at about US$33 billion, Latifi had previously announced.

The Economic Cooperation Organization or ECO is an Asian political and economic intergovernmental organization that was founded in 1985 in Tehran by the leaders of Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey.

 

Iran to host ECO Clean Energy Center

Iranian Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian has announced the readiness of Islamic Republic for hosting Center for Clean Energy of Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO).

Speaking at the ECO’s 4th ministerial meeting on Thursday, Ardakanian stated that the Iranian Energy Ministry has several programs for the development of energy exchange with the countries of the region on the agenda so that the country's geopolitical capacity can be maximally used in global energy markets.

He further suggested that ECO should establish a regional energy corridor to promote cooperation, exchange of knowledge and experience, and use the capacities and potentials of the countries in the region.

Creating such a corridor can lead to the expansion of energy exchanges for a sustainable energy supply, and will also promote the development of various power plants, especially renewable ones, to supply the energy needs of the region, Ardakanian said.

The official noted that the ECO region enjoys rich human and natural resources, energy reserves, capable private sectors, and privileged advantages of regional connectivity.

He said that sustainable energy supply and exchanging electricity can guarantee the security of countries and provide them with sustainable economic income.

“This can be made possible by connecting the electricity grids of neighboring countries, and this "cross-border connection of power grids" can not only pave the way for the transmission of electricity to neighboring countries, but also improve the reliability and resilience of the region’s power grids,” he stressed.

Ardakanian also underlined the significant potentials of the Iranian renewable market for foreign investors, and said, “Having great renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal, Iran is offering long-term contracts for guaranteed purchase of electricity at incentive rates, so the country’s renewable energy market, with its high potentials, is a very attractive market for foreign investors.”

The official put the country’s installed renewable capacity at 877 megawatts (MW), saying that all of the country’s renewable power plants have been constructed and established using the private sector investment.

“Over 160 companies are currently active in the field of renewable energies in the country,” Ardakanian said.