Mohammad-Reza Modaress Khiabani added that 26 vessels, with 3,600 TEU capacity, are readied to transport cargo to Russia.
He pointed to the Rasht-Astara rail agreement, which was signed by the two countries earlier this month, and said that the IRISL Group has embarked on signing an agreement with the North-South Transport Corridor Convergence Club for purchasing and building ships.
Possessing 139 equipped vessels in various models, the IRISL has the capacity of carrying 5 million Deadweight Tons (DWT) of cargo, he said, adding, “The IRISL’s equipped vessels are transporting goods in Asia-Pacific region, Commonwealth Independent States (CIS) and other Asian, African and Oceanic countries.
He pointed to the competitiveness of transportation of cargo within the framework of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and said the corridor is considered one of the important shortcuts in the world’s maritime transportation industry.
Launching direct and regular shipping lines between China, India and African countries via Bandar Abbas and Chabahar to the destinations of Caspian Sea littoral states and Russia as well as compilation of strategic cooperation documents for the development of relations with Russia and Caspian Sea littoral states are among the measures taken by the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines Group over the past months, he further said.