At the «Global Gateway» investor forum on transport links between the EU and Central Asia, held in Brussels at the end of January, members of the delegation of Turkmenistan presented the transit and transport potential of the Turkmenbashy international seaport and the capabilities of the «Balkan» national shipyard, capable of building sea vessels for Central Asia-EU cargo transportation. This was reported on the website of the Agency of Transport and Communications under the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan. Speaking at the Global Gateway session «Crossing the Caspian Sea: turning a bottleneck into a key connection», Deputy Chairman of the Turkmen Agency of Maritime and River Transport and Acting Director of the Turkmenbashy International Seaport Seyitguly Bayseyidov noted that the seaport of Turkmenistan is located at the intersection of Europe-Asia cargo routes and provides a vital link for landlocked Central Asian countries, offering them an economically viable route for trade. Recalling that the government of Turkmenistan invested 1.5 billion US dollars in the construction of the international seaport, Seyitguly Bayseyidov pointed out its capacity of 17 million tons of various types of cargo and commitment to the principles of sustainable development: in 2023, the port received a «Green Port» certificate from SLC ECO with the support of the OSCE. Investments also play a key role for the further development of shipbuilding in Turkmenistan.

Currently, the capacity of the «Balkan» national shipyard is designed for the construction of four ships and the repair of 20 ships per year. The shipbuilding and ship repair plant, which began building ships for the first time, together with partners plans to launch the first bulk carrier in 14 months of production, the second - two months later and the third - in another two months.

As Batyr Annayev, Deputy General Director of the Agency of Transport and Communications under the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan emphasized at the session «Quick victories, great impact - short-term investment opportunities for the Trans-Caspian transport link», such shipbuilding periods are the most optimal in the region, since usually the full commissioning of the sea the ship takes at least three years. According to preliminary calculations, to establish additional container transportation of five million tons per year between the ports of Turkmenbashy and Baku, the production of at least 20 more dry cargo ships will be required. The country also plans to start building RO-RO ferries. In addition to developing maritime transport infrastructure and shipbuilding, Turkmenistan is taking important steps to modernize and simplify maritime shipping procedures in accordance with global standards. Thus, the recently adopted decision on Turkmenistan’s accession to the International Maritime Organization Convention on the Facilitation of Maritime Transport will make it possible in the near future to create a national «Single Window» system in the Turkmenbashy International Seaport.