Heavy haulage to Kazakhstan: long distances, clear planning
Kazakhstan is Central Asia's largest project logistics market: mining, oil and gas, power generation and infrastructure continuously attract machinery and plant transports from Europe. At the same time the routing situation has fundamentally changed – the classic northern route through Russia is barred for many goods by EU sanctions. Oversize Transports, a brand of HSNK s.r.o., runs heavy haulage and abnormal load transports of up to 200 tonnes to Astana, Almaty, Atyrau, Aktau and project sites across the country – via the sanction-free Middle Corridor.
Scope of services for Kazakh projects
- Feasibility study of the entire route, including bridge load ratings, clearance heights and ferry capacities on the Caspian Sea
- Permit management: German road traffic regulations (StVO §29) plus special permits for all transit countries and Kazakhstan
- Low-loaders, semi low-bed trailers and modular trailers for packages up to 200 t
- BF3 / BF4 escort vehicles (German escort classification) within the EU, escorting under national law along the corridor
- Customs and transit handling: T1, TIR carnet, ATA carnet, EAEU import
- Crane and loading coordination, including port transhipment at Alat and Aktau/Kuryk
How it works: feasibility, permits, transport
We first check dimensions, weight and centre of gravity against the actual route – including the ferry connections across the Caspian Sea, whose capacity for oversize loads can be limited. You then receive a fixed-price quote. Once the order is placed, we apply for all permits, book ferry slots, coordinate escort vehicles and accompany the run with dedicated project management, available 24/7. You receive a status report at every border crossing and at the ferry transhipment for planning at the delivery point.
Route: the Middle Corridor in detail
By road the Middle Corridor runs through Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria into Turkey, then on through Georgia into Azerbaijan. At the ferry port of Alat near Baku the cargo is transhipped onto Caspian ferries to Aktau or Kuryk in western Kazakhstan; from there it continues by road to Atyrau, Astana or Almaty. For suitable packages we also examine multimodal variants with rail sections. The long distances within Kazakhstan – in places more than 2,000 km from the port – are planned with realistic stages and alternative routes for oversize loads. In winter conditions on the steppe we allow additional time buffers and align staging points with surfaced parking areas.
Customs: Kazakhstan is an EAEU member
Kazakhstan belongs to the Eurasian Economic Union; imports follow the EAEU customs code. We clear under the T1 procedure up to the EU external border and move the consignment on a TIR carnet through Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan to the Kazakh customs office of destination; for temporary imports with re-export, the ATA carnet is often the most efficient route. We align the commercial invoice, packing list and technical cargo description before departure – on a corridor with a ferry transhipment, clean papers matter twice as much.
Sanctions: why the Middle Corridor is the given choice
EU sanctions against Russia and Belarus massively restrict transit and logistics services on the northern route – for many goods it is legally ruled out, and for others it carries considerable risk. We therefore consistently run Kazakh traffic via the sanction-free Middle Corridor Turkey–Georgia–Caspian Sea. As Kazakhstan is an EAEU member, we additionally review re-export and export control questions for each shipment; responsibility under export control law rests with the exporter, and we supply the route- and procedure-side review.
Typical goods and costs
Frequent loads include mining and construction machinery, power plant and substation equipment, drilling and production equipment as well as complete plant modules. The focus areas are the oil and gas region around Atyrau and Aktau plus mining and energy projects in the centre and east of the country. We quote costs as a non-binding indicative range – depending on route, weight and permit situation – and, after the feasibility study, as a binding fixed price.