China Infrastructure Opportunities: Addressing the Caspian Sea Level Drop, Coastal Countries of the Caspian Sea to Connect the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea

The Kazakh International News Agency reported on May 4th that Azerbaijan proposed a century-scale mega project to its brotherly country, aiming to connect the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea through an undersea tunnel, promoting closer economic ties among Turkic countries.

According to reports from Azerbaijan media "Minval", the Azerbaijan ADOG company and Zira International Port proposed the construction of an undersea tunnel connecting the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea on the "Georgian side". The statement signed by the meritorious engineer Musa Suleymanov pointed out that with funding in place, modern technology can realize this concept. For example, the Fehmarn Belt underwater tunnel between Denmark and Germany began construction in July 2021 and is expected to be operational by 2029. It is 18 kilometers long, costing 8.5 billion euros, and upon completion will become the longest undersea tunnel in the world, including double-track railways and four-lane highways, reducing travel time from 5 hours to 7 minutes by train and 10 minutes by car.

If the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea are connected via an undersea tunnel, the ties among Turkic-speaking countries will reach unprecedented levels of closeness. However, the project proposal is not for building a railway or road tunnel but rather a waterway passage - constructing a tunnel canal. The declaration stated that the tunnel diameter is planned to be 10 meters, utilizing the natural difference in water levels between the two seas, allowing Black Sea water to flow into the Caspian Sea without pump stations.

The proposers emphasized that this action could also stabilize the water balance of the Caspian Sea, which has seen rapid drops and severe shallowing in recent years. If the Caspian Sea repeats the fate of the Aral Sea, it will pose serious ecological, economic, and infrastructure threats to the coastal countries. The tunnel will be equipped with regulating devices to control the flow of water and prevent excessive inflow of Black Sea water.

The ADOG company stated that the implementation of the project will accompany comprehensive international ecological monitoring and biodiversity protection measures, and technical and economic feasibility studies have already been prepared to mobilize the required resources. The initiators called on relevant countries to review this proposal at the government level and authorized institutions to begin preliminary consultations.

The Kazakh government has not yet received an official proposal from Azerbaijan, but as a coastal country of the Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan may be most concerned about this "century project." Previously, the Kazakh International News Agency reported that due to the drop in the Caspian Sea level, ships at Aktau Port have touched the seabed, hindering port operations, and freight companies have suffered heavy losses.

Yerbolat Tileyev, head of the Aktau International Maritime Trade Port department, said that a ship with a maximum capacity of 6,500 tons can currently only load up to 5,500 tons. The same problem applies to oil tankers. If this trend continues, ships may only be able to load half their cargo in the future, leading to a large-scale abandonment of the Aktau Port by freight companies.

"Oil tanker capacities vary; a 6,800-ton one can only load 6,500 tons, and a 12,000-ton one can only load 9,000-10,000 tons. If fully loaded, the bottom of the ship will hit the reef. If the underwater dredging is not fully carried out by the end of the year and the water level of the Caspian Sea continues to drop, shipping at Kazakhstan's ports will come to a standstill and become unprofitable," he warned.

Currently, the Aktau Port transports grain, oil, metal, and container goods to Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, and Turkmenistan, and then transships them via Azerbaijan to Georgia, before shipping to Turkey and Europe via the Black Sea. This route is in high demand, despite the potential of water transport not being fully utilized, with cargo volume increasing by 20% compared to the same period last year so far this year. Container transportation has seen impressive growth: over 7,000 containers were transported in the first quarter of 2024, reaching 17,000 in the first quarter of 2025, growing by 134% within three months.

Transportation Minister Marat Karabayev said that improving the potential of Caspian ports will be given priority, with ongoing underwater dredging efforts. Last year, the Kuryk Port completed the dredging, and this year it's the turn of the Aktau Port. The sand and silt dredged will be piled along the shore, and the drained seabed will be converted into new coastline, expanding the land area of Kazakhstan.

The minister revealed that the Aktau Port dredging will start in May, with part of the funds provided by the Kazakh National Railway Company, which manages the port, and the rest funded by the government. Part of the project will be completed this year, and the second phase will be implemented next year, allowing ships to operate at full capacity. The sand and silt dredged will fill the shoals, forming a new shoreline up to 2 meters high.

Karabayev also announced plans to build a new passenger dock in Aktau for cruise ships to berth, making it the first port in the Caspian Sea equipped with passport inspection facilities. After the dredging is completed, Kazakhstan will add 171 hectares of land, equivalent to four times the area of Vatican City.

Since 2006, the water level of the Caspian Sea has dropped by about 2 meters.

Original Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1831245336472576/

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