Under the present conditions of economic globalization, the importance of the development of Eurasian transcontinental railway corridors is increasing.

According to the IMF experts' estimates, the commodity trade between Asia and Europe constitutes USD600 billion annually, with this figure to grow 1.5 times by the year of 2010. Today, the transportation of goods is largely undertaken by the sea route via the Suez Canal. The perspective increase in commodity trade between Europe and Asia creates the necessary preconditions for the partial re-orientation of the freight flow from sea to railway routes. That is why the importance of international land transportation is steadily growing.

Moreover, the current world trade growth, together with the observable lack of existent transport corridors, dictates that new ones are created for the international freight flows and that the accompanying technological processes are simplified. The territorial characteristics and the infrastructure of the Republic of Kazakhstan allow for the building of a transport corridor that would provide the transcontinental connection between South-Eastern Asia and Europe.

The disadvantages of the existent corridors:

With respect to these considerations, The National Company Qazaqstan Temir Zholy jsc has developed a plan of construction of the TKTR in the direction from railway station Dostyk to the Turkmenistan state border, with the possible continuation of this railway route in the future through the territory of Turkmenistan and its connection with the 1435 mm-gauge railway system of the Islamic Republic of Iran and exit at the European markets via Turkey.

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According to primary estimation, the introduction of the TKTR into use will create the following freight flows:

[...] According to preliminary evaluation, the length of the trunk railway from station Dostyk via Central Kazakhstan to the Turkmenistan state border will be 3083 km. Estimated cost of the project - USD3.5 bln. [USD4.5 bln here, USD5 bln here] Estimated construction period - 2005-2010.

The construction of the transcontinental trunk railway calls for substantial investments of capital. In view of the international nature and the scale of this project, its realization through the establishment of an international consortium is being considered.

To involve private capital in the project, the intention is to use the experience of western states in the use of concession mechanisms in the sphere of the creation and management of infrastructure. [The realization of the project is] at the expense of the `concessioner' [NB: this term is of my own invention] who thus acquires the right of the exploitation of the establishment for the period of recoupment of his investment. At the end of this period, the establishment is submitted to the control of the state without indemnity.

The results of the preliminary work:

1. The negotiations with the relevant ministries of the CPR, Turkey, and Iran have been accomplished.
   
2. The project has been presented to the government officials, financial representatives, representatives of transport companies and other businesses in China (Beijing, Hong Kong), Great Britain, Iran, Turkey, etc.
   
3. The framework agreement between the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Railways of the People's Republic of China on cooperation in the TKTR construction project is in the final stages of conclusion.
   
4. An open tender on the development of technical-economic substantiation of the TKTR has been carried out, which resulted in the signing of the contract for the evaluation of the project's profitability and competitiveness with Tynyshpayev Kazakh Academy of Transport and Communications.