Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The Chinese company China Railway International will design and build the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.

China Railway International may engage enterprises from Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan as subcontractors if they have the appropriate experience and capabilities.

Kyrgyzstan is expected to exempt staff from China and Uzbekistan from the need to obtain work permits.

China Railway International is a subsidiary of China Railway Group Limited, which is responsible for the construction of railways in China, Indonesia, Laos and Venezuela.

On 6 June 2024, a ceremony was held in Beijing to sign an agreement on the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.

The railway route will pass through difficult mountainous terrain along the route: Kashgar - Torugart - Makmal - Jalal-Abad - Andijan.

It is expected that by 2023 the volume of transportation on the new railway will reach 8 million tons per year, by 2024 - 10 million tons, and by 2050 - 13.5 million tons.

Delivery times for goods will be reduced by 7 days. Uzbekistan can receive economic benefits from cargo transit in the amount of US$150-200 million per year.

The project will improve export-import communications not only for Uzbekistan, but also for Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and other countries. It has great transit prospects, connecting China and the Hindustan Peninsula with one railway line, which was previously possible only by sea.

The new railway will also provide Central Asian countries with access to the Pacific Ocean through China, and China with access to the Persian Gulf.

The start of construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is scheduled for October 2024, Uzbekistan Transport Minister Ilkhom Mahkamov said in an interview with the O’zbekiston 24 channel.

At the same time, Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan Akylbek Japarov noted that construction of the road is planned to begin at the end of August 2024.