Tallinn as horseshoe center

TALLINN - The Estonian logistics’ industry is planning a cargo corridor that would reach from mainland USA and Canada to Central Asia and Kazakhstan, while Estonia would be a major nodal point in the route, reports Postimees. They hope to transport nearly 2 million tons of goods by that route per year.

“This cross-Atlantic horseshoe would start from Canada; there would be a stopover in Tallinn and from here, goods would continue to Kazakhstan,” said Estonian Logistics Cluster communications manager Margot Ots.
Among states that are located in the East, Kazakhstan is one of the most important regions for logistics besides Russia and China, as oil products are exported from there, and U.S. farm machinery could be imported there. The state lacks direct access to world seas where cargo transport is more favorable.
Estonia has the deepest ports in the Baltic Sea, and since Kazakhs are interested in selling an average of 100,000-ton shipments, this is important.

Currently Kazakhstan’s biggest oil company Gazmonaigaz, exports its oil products via the Sillamae port. Around a million tons of oil products from Kazakhstan moved via the port there, mainly to the U.S. and Western Europe.
Besides oil products, coal, grain, fertilizers and metals could be sent from Kazakhstan to the West.
The other end of the cross-Atlantic horseshoe would be, according to plans, in the Halifax port in Canada. Canadians are also interested in Estonia’s rail connections with Moscow, Kazakhstan and Central Europe. Currently they use a route via the Mediterranean, Black and Caspian seas and transit via Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan to reach Kazakhstan.