Major Grain Hub to be Established in Russia's Tatarstan

An agreement to establish a land-based grain hub in the territory of Russia's Tatarstan was signed on Wednesday by the Prime Minister of the Republic, Alexey Pesoshin, and the CEO of the New Land Grain Corridor Group of Companies, Yuri Manevich, on the sidelines of the XV International Economic Forum KazanForum.

"The agreement entails the creation of a specialized high-tech facility for high-speed transhipment of grain cargoes in Tatarstan with a capacity of 8 million tons per year," the statement from the republic's press service said.

The grain hub will be located near the Dan Xiaopin International Logistics Complex as part of the development of the "Zerno+" logistic model and the replication of the technology of land-based railway transhipment of bulk cargoes.

Specialized grain-container trains will be sent from the new grain hub in the export direction, and goods for consumer consumption and components for manufacturers in Tatarstan will come back in the same containers.

The cargo base of the hub being created is grain produced in Tatarstan and the regions of the Central Federal District of Russia.

The target markets for supplies are China, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran and other countries. Return cargoes of up to 200,000 TEUs — twenty-foot equivalent units — per year will be received at regional transport and logistics centers with which the grain hub will work in a technological bundle.

The Russia-Islamic World International Economic Forum "Russia — Islamic World: KazanForum" is taking place in Kazan from May 14 to 19.

The forum serves as a platform for strengthening trade, economic, scientific-technical, social, and cultural ties between Russia and the countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

By decree of the President of the Russian Federation in 2023, KazanForum holds federal status. The organizing committee is headed by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Marat Khusnullin.