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Russian Railways and Korean Railways (Korail) to expand cooperation

Oleg Belozerov, Chairman of the Board of OJSC Russian Railways, and Mr. Oh, Young-sik, President and CEO of the Korean Railways Corporation in the Republic of Korea (South Korea), have signed a memorandum of understanding on issues cooperation.

The memorandum was signed in the presence of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and the President of the Republic of Korea Moon Jae-in in Moscow on 22 June 2018.

Russian Railways and Korail have determined that one of the main directions of their cooperation will be the joint development and implementation of projects in the field of railway transport and logistics.

The two sides expressed their readiness to study and elaborate the conditions of railway transportation between the Republic of Korea - Russia - Europe, including trilateral project connections involving the Trans-Korean Railway and the Trans-Siberian Railway with the participation of the Democratic People’s Republic (North Korea), South Korea and the Russian Federation.

The two companies also plan to develop cooperation in the personnel sphere, in particular the organisation of programmes to exchange experience and experts and upgrade skills and professional internships.

The day before the memorandum was signed, a meeting took place between the heads of Russian Railways and Korail at which the parties noted the growth in the volume of container transportation between Russia and the Republic of Korea.

In the five months of 2018 to the end of May, this indicator increased by 40% and amounted to about 47,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs).

Oleg Belozerov emphasised that the Company is interested in further increasing the volume of rail transportation between Korea, Russia and Europe.

According to the senior management at Russian Railways and Korail, this goal can be achieved by restoring rail links on the Korean Peninsula by modernising the Trans-Korean Railway.

The parties noted that favourable conditions are being created for joint work in this direction.

Between 2008 and 2014, the railway branch line from Khasan station in Russia to the port of Rajin in North Korea was restored.

This project is the first stage in reconstructing the Trans-Korean Railway.

During the meeting, the heads of Russian Railways and Korail also discussed the possibility of establishing a joint venture specialising in rail logistics.