The head of the General Directorate of Railways in the Iranian province of Hormozgan, Ali Reza Nasiri Parzandeh, said on Wednesday, that the first Russian commercial train heading to Saudi Arabia arrived at the port of Shahid Rajaee in southern Iran.
On Wednesday evening, Nasiri Parzandeh said that the first transit train comprising 28 wagons and 36 40-foot containers carrying goods to Iran from the Inchebron border in Golestan Province, according to the specified schedule, was delivered to the destination announced by the owner of the goods to unload it.
“This shipment will be unloaded and transported to the Saudi city of Jeddah after completing customs procedures,” the Iranian official said.
He pointed out that choosing the road of Bandar Abbas port to cross goods from Russia to Saudi Arabia will increase customs revenues for Iran, in addition to making unloading and loading destinations in Iran more active, as well as strengthening rail transport, increasing its share in transit of goods, and reducing the risks of land transport in general.
The head of the General Directorate of Railways in the Iranian province of Hormozgan, Ali Reza Nasiri Parzandeh, stressed the importance and economic benefits of the railway, explaining that the continuation of the plan for the transit route indicates the correct economic direction regarding the foreign policy of the current Iranian government.
He added that this means sending a message of comprehensive security with the interdependence of the common interests of the various Caspian Sea countries to the Gulf.
Last June, Iranian media reported that the first container train heading to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia departed from the Russian Chelyabinsk freight station, and the train follows the international transport corridor “north-south” through Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran.
The press service of the South Ural Railway reported, at the time, that the train contains 42 containers with energy equipment and non-ferrous metals, and moves according to a specialized schedule designed for freight traffic along this route, noting that two months ago, a container train was sent to India along railway line.
The service noted that starting from the third quarter of this year, the South Ural Railway plans to send two container trains per month along the North-South transport corridor.
