The announcement was made at a meeting of BRICS transport ministers on Saturday on the sidelines of the 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
Russia said it will make use of the International North-South Corridor to export coals to India.
Russia’s Presidential Aide Igor Levitin said the first coal-carrying wagons will be sent to India after passing through Iran and the port city of Bandar Abbas.
Speaking in his visit with Ambassador of Iran to Russia Kazem Jalali, Levitin said, "The first wagons carrying coal will be transited to India after passing through the territory of Iran and Bandar Abbas."
Also, in this meeting, the two sides discussed the latest status of cooperation in this sector, especially the construction project of the Rasht-Astara Railway.
In a separate meeting with Oleg Belozyorov, the president of Russian Railways, Iran's ambassador discussed the expansion of bilateral cooperation, particularly the implementation of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
In this meeting, Belozyorov emphasized the promotion of bilateral relations and called for the development of railway cooperation between Iran and Russia to increase freight transport between the two countries.
Referring to the signing of the agreement for the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, Jalali also considered the implementation of this project important and in line with the interests of Iran, Russia, and the countries of the region, according to the website of the Iranian Ministry of Roads and Urban Development (MRUD).
Back in February 2024, Iran Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash hosted Igor Levitin in Tehran to discuss the promotion of transit along the INSCT and acceleration of the Rasht-Astara Railway Project which was reached in July 2023.
In 2023, Russia transited 600,000 tons of freights through Iran's territory and the cargo transportation is expected to increase along the INSTC via Iran to 4 million tons per year in 2024, according to the Russian deputy minister of transport.