Anaklia is set to become a significant hub for the Black Sea container trade. Security remains a concern, as the port is not far from the border of the Russian-backed breakaway republic of Abkhazia.
Romania and Bulgaria are seeking international investors for two bridge projects over the Danube River and a 200-kilometer motorway linking the Romanian port of Constanta with Varna and Burgas. Chinese companies will certainly take note. Going into next year, there’ s talk of listing Portul Constanta for an IPO. With success elsewhere in the region, expect Chinese firms to look for ways to buy in.
China Harbor Engineering Company( CHEC) has expressed interest in investing into the Bulgarian ports of Varna and Burgas as reported by party members of GERB, the senior partner in Bulgaria’ s governing coalition. The company would create industrial zones that would funnel trade from Chinese firms. But the GERB party – the senior partner of the governing coalition in power – suffered a setback as legislative gamesmanship with the Prime Minister led to speaker Dimitar Glavchev to step down. New developments for Chinese investments have stalled thus far.
MULTIMODAL ROUTE OUTLOOK
There is a hard ceiling Large container ships can’ t approaching on China-Europe access the Caspian and it rail transit via Russia due to makes little sense to build budgetary strain in Russia and them there. This limits the a refusal to allow Chinese or economies of scale that can be other concessionaires to achieved and means that trade negotiate terms for projects. will largely be driven by the Barring significant network countries along the route upgrades, bottlenecks will based on the sectors of their hinder growth. The Trans- economies showing growth. Caspian route, however, But the BTK railway has made seems to set to keep it China’ s preferred option for growing. In reality, the volume transshipment to Europe. of trade it can handle will always be constrained.
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Ukraine also provides opportunities for China. CHEC already won a contract in May to dredge the approach to Yuzhny port near Odessa. China’ s Sinohydro Corporation Ltd. recently won a contract to upgrade the Kyiv-Chop highway. The construction sector is up 23.4 % year-on-year as of October, worth $ 2.3 billion, and China is poised to competitively bid on port and highway projects. Infrastructure investment is needed to make up for economic losses imposed by the loss of the Donbas, Russia’ s annexation of Crimea, and to build a foundation for sustained growth. The state of political and economic reforms in Kyiv are the best predictor of sustainability. Unfortunately, the outlook is mixed.