Wednesday, June 28 2017 23:19

ArmInfo. An alternative to Upper Lars could be the  road through South Ossetia. Answering the question of ArmInfo correspondent during the June 28 press  conference, Chairman of the Union of Industrialists and Manufacturers  of Armenia Vazgen Safaryan stated.

At the same time, he noted the possibility of carrying out cargo  transportation by sea. However, in this vein, the expert explained  that Georgia, guided by Armenia's lack of alternatives to the  delivery of goods, set high tariffs for cargo transportation, which  according to Safaryan's words is reflected at the cost price of the  goods, and in the end the products lose their competitiveness. "Our  government should work with Georgian authorities on this issue, based  on the points and provisions of the World Trade Organization (WTO),"  he stressed.

In this vein, the chairman of the Union of Freight Carriers of  Armenia Makar Arakelyan added that Georgia's delivery of goods  through  sea route costs several hundred dollars, while Armenia is  forced to pay more than $ 1 thousand per ton.

Concerning the prospects for the construction of the North-South  railway,Safaryan noted that   it is necessary to use interests and  points of contact with Iran and conduct a very flexible policy.  According to the expert, if we start work in this direction today,  the railway will be ready for operation in 10 years. At the same  time, he noted that Iran, China and Kazakhstan could join the  construction in the long term, since the North-South transport  corridor can be considered as one of the components of the Silk Road.   According to the National Statistics  Service of Armenia, the volume  of cargo transportation in Armenia in 2016 increased by 85.3% to  20,485.2 thousand tons versus  same period of the previous year. Out  of them, 16,248.8 thousand tons (79.3% of the total volume) account  for road transport, which increased 2.4-fold year-on-year. According  to statistical data, rail freight traffic for the year increased by  3.1% - up to 2 610.9 thousand tons. Air transportation also increased  - by 79.4% - to 18.3 thousand tons.

In January-April 2017, the volume of cargo transportation in Armenia  increased by 71.6% to 8 234.4 thousand tonsversus  the same period of  the previous year. Of these, 6,659.9 thousand tons accounted for road  transport, which increased 94.2 times year-on-year. According to  statistical data, rail freight traffic for the reporting period  increased by 8.6% - to 871.9 thousand tons. Air transportation also  increased - by 82.1% - to 7.1 thousand tons.