On Friday, the Chinese embassy proudly announced the “first train on the China-Romania route” that left Wuhan with 50 cars and will arrive in Constanta. This moment is not so memorable for several reasons,

Here is the message from the Chinese Embassy

• “The first train on the China-Romania route as part of CHINA RAILWAYExpress successfully departed from Wuhan. The train, consisting of 50 cars loaded with glass tempering furnaces, fabrics, mechanical equipment and everyday products, started from Wujiashan Railway Station, Wuhan, crossed the border through the city of Korgas-Kalasi, passed through Kazakhstan, Georgia and crossed the Caspian Sea. Sea and the Black Sea to the final destination of Constanţa in Romania by combined rail-sea transport.’

Therefore, it is not a direct train, because the cargo travels some parts by sea, for example, on the Black Sea between Batumi (Georgia) and Constanta, and on a ferry on the Caspian Sea.

It has been a decade since various freight trains have run between China and Europe, with the longest trains reaching Germany and France. However, the share of goods transported by railway is insignificant, if we keep in mind the total amount of goods transported by all types.

In addition, the problem was that the trains returned from Europe to China quite empty, which was a big negative in terms of profitability.

Romania was not on the “map” for direct trains coming from China, and this is also because of the infrastructure, and also because the trains, if they were to take a direct land route, would have to pass through Russia and Ukraine.

China-Europe trains destined for Central European countries covered thousands of kilometers in Russia and entered the EU in Poland, and the war in Ukraine affected their route. Russia is hard to avoid, especially because it has good infrastructure and trains can cover 1500 km/day. Alternative routes are longer and more difficult.

There remains a route called the “Middle Corridor”, which also has a train from China, a route that bypasses Russia, passes through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia, and from there the goods are sent by ship and delivered by sea to Constanta, from where they are transported by freight trains via Bucharest – Craiova – Timisoara – Arad – Kurtici, and then to the west of Europe.

There are companies that have conducted tests on this corridor, including the Grampet group.

Another branch of the Middle Corridor led from the Caucasus to Ukraine, but due to the war, it is out of the question.

The middle corridor has potential for growth, but little. There are obstacles that need to be overcome, related to costs, travel time, customs formalities. Also, a freight train can take 3 days from Constanța to Curtici, and the port of Constanța still has a lot to modernize in terms of rail.