Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — More than 400 transport projects worth a combined US$345 billion are being implemented or planned across Eurasia through 2035, according to an updated study by the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB).
Alexander Zaboev, head of the EDB's Center for Integration Studies, presented the findings of the bank's “Eurasian Transport Framework Project Observatory” during a webinar.
Of the total, around 300 projects are in active construction or project-documentation preparation, while approximately 100 remain at the planning or investor-search stage.
Russia accounts for the largest share of investment, primarily in the modernization of the Eastern Railway Polygon, approaches to seaports and development of the Northern Sea Route. Kazakhstan ranks second by investment volume. Significant funding is also planned for Uzbekistan, while Kyrgyzstan has major infrastructure plans.
Zaboev said 84% of all regional investment is directed toward roads and railways, the most capital-intensive types of infrastructure. A further US$30 billion is allocated to seaport development and US$13 billion to the airport network.
A total of 48 international development banks are involved in financing transport projects, contributing more than US$6 billion. Another 29 projects are at the negotiation stage. According to Zaboev, the Asian Development Bank remains the most active international institution in the region and is also implementing a project to comprehensively modernize and digitalize border crossing points.
Central Asia: 114 Projects Worth US$72 Billion
Aidos Samarov, senior analyst at the EDB's Center for Integration Studies, said Central Asia has 114 ongoing and prospective infrastructure projects with a combined value of around US$72 billion.
The largest share of investment is directed toward roads, at US$40.6 billion. Railways account for around 30%, while more than US$5 billion is allocated to airport development, including the modernization of Almaty airport and construction of the New Tashkent airport.
According to Samarov, national budgets provide 56% of transport infrastructure investment in the region. The remaining 44% comes from extra-budgetary and external sources, including international development banks, the private sector and foreign investment, almost all of which comes from China.
The largest concentration of investment is in Kazakhstan, which has 55 projects worth US$32.6 billion. Of this amount, US$22.7 billion is allocated to roads and more than US$6 billion to railway projects.
Kyrgyzstan has 23 projects worth around US$11 billion, with more than 90% of the portfolio already in implementation or documentation-preparation stages.
The observatory lists 11 projects in Tajikistan worth US$1.74 billion, most of them involving railway infrastructure.
In Turkmenistan, six major projects worth around US$6 billion are under consideration, including the US$2.5 billion Ashgabat-Turkmenabat highway.
Uzbekistan: 31 Projects Worth US$17 Billion
Samarov said the observatory includes 31 projects in Uzbekistan with a total value of around US$17 billion.
Roads account for the largest share of investment, at around US$10 billion, while just under US$4 billion is allocated to railways. Significant funding is also planned for border crossing points.
Around US$7 billion worth of projects are already under implementation. Of the 31 projects, 28 envisage attracting debt financing, with international development banks participating in 16 of them.
Among Uzbekistan's largest projects, Samarov named the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, construction of the Tashkent-Andijan toll expressway and construction of the New Tashkent airport.
Zaboev also noted the growth of Uzbekistan's trade turnover as one of the drivers of increased freight flows along the TRACECA corridor, both with countries in the region and with Türkiye.
He said Uzbekistan is considering the possibility of transporting cargo through the ports of Aktau and Kuryk as part of the development of the Middle Corridor.
Among Uzbekistan's infrastructure achievements over the past year, Zaboev highlighted the commissioning of the Gulistan-Angren-Kokand-Andijan-Osh road section bypassing the Angren coal mine, as well as the electrification and launch of high-speed services on the 465-km Bukhara-Khiva railway section.
According to Zaboev, demand for transport on this route is already so high that tickets must be purchased in advance. He described this as a prelude to larger-scale projects, including plans to build a high-speed railway between Tashkent and Samarkand.
China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway
The study gives particular attention to the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway under construction, which Samarov described as the largest transport project in Central Asia involving China.
The corridor will be 523 km long and will include 27 tunnels with a combined length of 103 km and 48 bridges spanning approximately 16 km. The project's total cost is estimated at US$4.7 billion. Its financial model is divided into two equal parts: a US$2.35 billion loan from China and a contribution from a joint venture in which a Chinese company holds a 51% stake.
The new line will run from Kashgar through Torugart and Makmal toward Jalal-Abad, before connecting to Uzbekistan's existing railway network.
Samarov said China is becoming the largest foreign investor in Central Asia's transport infrastructure overall. The observatory records more than 20 projects involving Chinese companies and capital, with a combined value of around US$7 billion. This exceeds the total investment by all international development banks in the region.
In addition to the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, Chinese capital is involved in the development of Kuryk port in Kazakhstan, railway and border logistics infrastructure in Kyrgyzstan, and road construction in Tajikistan. In Uzbekistan, China's participation in major road projects is under consideration.
Bottlenecks and Prospects
Asked about the main bottlenecks affecting transport corridors passing through Kazakhstan, Zaboev said there was currently no single critical bottleneck. However, individual constraints are emerging as freight flows grow, including the need to modernize single-track railway lines, build additional main tracks, electrify routes and carry out dredging at the ports of Aktau and Kuryk due to the shallowing of the Caspian Sea.
He identified congestion at the Dostyk and Altynkol border crossings with China as another risk factor. A new railway through the Bakhty border crossing is being built to reduce the pressure on these crossings.
According to the EDB, the observatory's methodology covers 13 countries in the Eurasian region, most of which are landlocked.
Zaboev emphasized that all transport corridors are cross-border, meaning their efficiency depends directly on coordinated infrastructure development across all the countries through which they pass.
