Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

An Iranian official has said the country plans to turn its southeastern Chabahar port, which is the only Iranian port with direct access to ocean, into a trade hub in the near future.

Pointing to Iran's development plans for Chabahar port, head of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Gholam Hossein Shafe'ee said at a meeting with Indian Ambassador to Tehran Shri Niraj Srivastava those investing in the area will have a secure and promising prospect, Press TV reported.

Iran's Chabahar port, located 72 kilometers (44 miles) west of Pakistan's Gwadar port, holds immense strategic and economic significance for India.

Shafe'ee said the country plans to connect Mashhad rail road in northeastern Iran to the western Afghan province of Herat and launch development projects in Sarakhs special economic zone in northeastern Iran.

Srivastava, for his part, described Chabahar port as a key location for the promotion of Iran-India trade and said New Delhi seeks to participate in development of the area.

He said India has allocated $300 million to invest in development of Chabahar port and the country plans to take part in development of rail road from the area and shipping lines in the next steps.

The port is already connected to the city of Zaranj in Afghanistan's southwestern province of Nimruz and can serve as India's entry point to Afghanistan, Central Asia and beyond.

The port was partially built by India in the 1990s to provide access to Afghanistan and Central Asia, bypassing Pakistan. It lies on the border of Indian Ocean and Oman Sea and because of its ease of access to ocean, long ago it was the centre of business, trade and navigation.

In June, the Narendra Modi government in India has decided to get moving on the long-delayed construction of strategically critical Chabahar port.

India's Prime Minister Modi has declared his keenness to deepen ties with neighbors and the port is expected to play an important role in the economic reconstruction and development of Afghanistan, Indian media reported.

The project involves a capital expenditure of about Rs 550 crore. It will be implemented by a special purpose vehicle formed by Jawahar Lal Nehru Port Trust and Kandla Port Trust along with a private player.