Mitsui Announces Plan of Trans-Siberian Freight Service

Tokyo, July 20 (Jiji Press)–Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co. said Friday it is in tie-up talks with Russia’s state-run railway firm for launching a freight service between Vladiovostok in the Russian Far East and the European part of the country that uses the Trans-Siberian Railway.

After Mitsui and Russian Railways, the operator of the long- distance railroad, ink the deal in late August, the freight service will kick off in September at the earliest.

Mitsui expects demand for trans-Siberian cargo transportation to increase as a number of Japanese manufacturers, including Toyota Motor Corp. , Nissan Motor Co. and Suzuki Motor Co. , are preparing to launch production in and around St. Petersburg.

The transport of cargoes from Japan to St. Petersburg on the trans-Siberian route will take about 25 days, some 10 days shorter than sea transport via the Suez Canal.

Mitsui’s plan comes on the heels of an agreement reached between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Russian counterpart Mikhail Fradkov in February to strengthen economic cooperation in various fields, including the transport sector.

Russian Railways President Vladimir Yakunin, who visited Japan in March, has asked Japan to increase its use of the trans-Siberian railway, in his meeting with Abe.END

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