Bakhty–Ayagoz: third China rail crossing by 2027

The Bakhty–Ayagoz railway is one of Kazakhstan’s major transport builds: 303 km, a third rail border crossing with China, design corridor capacity up to ~25 Mt per year. Target completion: end of 2027.

As of July 2026 inspections (KTZ / Ministry of Transport): about 20 million m³ of earthworks — roughly 51–52% of design volume; subgrade was aimed for October 2026. The site has hundreds of machines and more than 1,300 specialists, with shift camps at Ai, Sholpan, Urjar and Bakhty. The 2026 track-laying plan was raised from 50 to 70 km. The line includes dozens of bridges and hundreds of culverts (July work reports show dozens of bridges already under construction).

Corridor logic: relieve congested joins such as Khorgos/Altynkol and add another rail entry from China into the Trans-Kazakhstan path toward the Caspian. For OOG / project cargo, rail often carries modules, towers and heavy pieces at the entry; the last mile still needs lowbeds, permits and route survey. A new crossing does not erase the OOG leg — it changes where the China-border queue builds and how predictable entry into Kazakhstan is.

Practical 2026–2027 takeaway: tender project cargo not only on a “Khorgos slot,” but on a third-crossing scenario as subgrade and border infrastructure come online. Until commercial operation, this is capacity planning — not a guaranteed sailing date for a given shipment.