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The international container hub at Aktau Port is in operation and has handled its first container train. The project brings together KTZh, Aktau International Sea Commercial Port and Lianyungang Port Group; construction started in November 2024. Phase one lifts the port’s container capacity to about 140,000 TEU a year; after two phases the target is about 240,000 TEU. Most cargo is China transit on the Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor.

Kazakhstan's Transport Minister Nurlan Sauranbayev told a government meeting on 6 October that truck waiting time on the Nur Zholy–Khorgos route at the Kazakhstan–China border has fallen tenfold, from about 30 days to 3 by his account. A digital freight passport with a single QR code has replaced the paper queue ticket; over 11,000 have been issued and clearance speed is up 30%. The target is no more than 30 minutes per checkpoint crossing, with the share of digitally tracked freight set at 20% this year, 60% in 2027 and 80% in 2028.

Kazakhstan's Ministry of Transport said on 5 October that main dredging has begun at Aktau port, with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) as general contractor. About 1.3 million cubic metres of soil will be removed to bring depths to 6–7 m as the Caspian Sea level keeps falling, with completion planned by year-end. The ministry estimates Middle Corridor (TITR) volumes could rise by up to 30% and sea-leg costs fall 10–15%; these are official projections.

The Middle Corridor, or Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, from China via Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan and Georgia to Türkiye or Europe is not one fixed line but a chain of rail, Caspian ferries or feeders, Black Sea shipping and road. Based on official and carrier sources, this piece explains three common routings, port differences, what the published transit times cover, and how transit, EU entry filing and final import are split, for Chinese exporters and forwarders preparing quotes.

On Oct. 1, the first scheduled Shijiazhuang–Tacheng–Central Asia rail-road freight train left Shijiazhuang International Land Port with 110 TEUs of auto parts bound for Almaty, Burundai and other Kazakh cities via Tacheng. For Chinese exporters, a fixed weekly timetable supports production planning and more predictable deliveries to Kazakhstan.

The transport ministries of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure have signed a memorandum on the CASA railway project, a proposed Kazakhstan–Uzbekistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan route to Pakistani seaports. It covers technical and economic studies and a feasibility review only, and a working group is under consideration. No route, investment figure or timeline has been published, and construction has not started.

At the Issuer Day on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange on 2 September, KazTransOil presented a preliminary plan to expand two sections of the Kazakhstan–China oil pipeline system, put at USD 327 million (about KZT 176.7 billion), to run in 2026–2030 and be financed mainly by borrowing. Kenkiyak–Atyrau would go from about 6 to 15 million tonnes a year, Kenkiyak–Kumkol from 10 to 20 million, with five new pumping stations. The estimate is preliminary and may change after design and feasibility work. Chinese energy contractors and equipment suppliers have reason to follow it.

Guoyou Materials Group plans a multifunctional terminal at Kuryk Port in Mangystau. Kazakhstan's Prime Minister's Office says phase-one investment is about 470 billion tenge, with target capacity of up to 15 million tonnes a year and construction in 2026–2028; phase two is set for 2029–2031, with full commissioning around 2032 at about 25 million tonnes. The project was discussed at presidential level and sits inside Middle Corridor port expansion.

Representatives of Xi'an Free Trade Port Construction and Operation Co., Ltd. visited Kazakhstan and held talks at Kuryk Port, discussing the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor), increasing container transit volumes, and prospects for long-term cooperation. Representatives of Kazakhstan Railways JSC attended.

Beijing Baojing Qihang (Polyking) introduced at the Kazakhstan-China Investment Forum that it is promoting a digital customs clearance solution connecting the two countries' customs systems to reduce vehicle customs clearance waiting times at the Khorgos and Nur Zholy ports from 20-30 days to about 1 day, with accompanying warehousing and road investments, offering direct reference value for Chinese automakers and cross-border logistics companies.

Khorgos Gateway dry port handled more than 372,000 TEU in 2025, up 2% year on year; average handling time per container was reduced from 5 hours to 1 hour.