A consortium formed by the Grampet Group – Romanian Railway Group (GFR), GR Logistics and Terminals LLC (Georgia) and ASCO Logistic CJSC (Azerbaijan) will operate regular shipping between Constanta and Batumi/ Poti ports, following an agreement signed in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia.

According to a press release from the Grampet Group, the agreement represents another step by which the member companies of the Middle Corridor – Trans-Caspian International Transport Association will work together to intensify the flow of goods along this route, according to Agerpres.

“One year after we joined the Middle Corridor Association, we were able to activate the Batumi/ Poti – Constanţa shipping route, which has a very important role for the transit of Asia-Europe freight. It is practically the last link missing from the Middle Corridor chain. At the same time, the agreement from Tbilisi brings us closer to our stated goal of inaugurating the first rail freight between China and Western Europe, with transit through Romania,” said Gruia Stoica, president of the Grampet Group.

Also Sorin Chinde, vice president of the Transport Division of the Grampet Group, says that the lack of a direct naval connection between the Georgian ports and Constanta has so far been a major obstacle in attracting transport for Europe on this route.

“The alternative routes, which pass through Istanbul or Piraeus, are non-competitive, because they have a transit time of 12 to 24 days. Once a permanent and regular connection between the ports of Georgia and Romania is launched, we can reduce this transit time by 5 days on each leg, so the transit time between Georgian ports and Constanta is reduced to 2 days,” Chinde added.