OREANDA-NEWS. December 12, 2007. This year Bulgaria will pass on the chairmanship in the Intergovernmental commission (IGC) TRACECA to Kazakhstan, reported the Official website http://en.government.kz.

This was announced today at the VI IGC TRACECA sitting by Kazakhstan’s Transport Minister Serik Akhmetov.

“When holding the position, Kazakhstan will keep pushing its transport initiatives. We need to further bolster transit potential of the member states”, S. Akhmetov said.

At the Astana sitting, the sides will amend the basic multilateral agreement on developing the Europe - Caucasus - Asia transport corridor; they will also discuss preferential terms of carriage and issues of rapprochement of the national legislations.

TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) is an an international organisation of economic cooperation established in 1993. As of now, it comprises 13 nations.

Kazakhstan’s Transport Minister Serik Akhmetov also briefed the sitting participants on the maritime transport potential. By 2012 the cargo volume to be shipped across the Caspian Sea will make up about 65 million tons per annum, nearly twice up from the current year. “Aktau is the largest sea port of Kazakhstan; it handles 33% of the total cargoes. Currently the port is being expanded northwards; and the expansion project will enable to double the volume of handled oil and dry cargoes within the two years’ time” he said.

Besides, the Program of the Caspian Sea Offshore Zone Development envisages expansion of Kuryk port: an oil-loading terminal capable of handling up to 20 million tons of oil per year is to be constructed there.