China Railway Construction Engineering Group has signed an agreement with a joint venture, formed by state-owned Uzbekistan Railways and Kazakhstan’s PTC Holding, to build one of Central Asia’s largest logistics hubs.
The multi-profile, $84-million, 159-hectare logistics complex, named Silkway Central Asia, will be located near the Uzbek capital, Tashkent.Its first phase is expected to be completed by 2027, the entire project by 2030.
At full capacity, the hub is expected to process 3 million tons of rail freight cargo annually.Elsewhere, state-owned Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ) and China’s state-owned SichuanPort and Shipping Investment Group (SPSI) are constructing a modern agro-logistics center in the Akmola region, according to a statement released by KTZ.
The project envisions a 40-hectare hub capable of handling over 1 million tons of cargo per year. “The new terminal will provide storage for agricultural products, cargo consolidation, and the formation of container trains for shipment to export markets,” according to the statement. “The project will create over 500 jobs during the construction phase and approximately 100 permanent jobs after commissioning.” The new hub will become a key link in the supply chain between Kazakhstan and Chengdu, one of China’s largest export centers.
The partners previously reported negotiations about the project, but it had not been disclosed that the deal had been finalized.Some details of the contract have yet to be disclosed: it remains unclear, for example, how much SPSI pledged to invest in the project, if at all, and what the project’s construction timeline is.
Energy sector China’s energy giant CNPC is becoming more active in Central Asia.Its subsidiary, XIBU, signed a deal with Uzbek state oil and gas company Uzbekneftegas to drill 30 wells in Uzbekistan, with an option to increase the number to 105.
Last month, CNPC discussed potential major exploration and drilling deals with Kazakhstan, its largest regional partner.And in January, it received a license to conduct large-scale oil and gas exploration at 57 sites in Tajikistan.
In addition, CNPC is set to begin work on Phase Four of Turkmenistans massive Galkynysh gas field.Meanwhile, the volume of crude transported through Kazakhstan’s Atasu-Alashankou pipeline to China has exceeded 200 million tons since its commissioning in 2006; volume shipped via the Kenkiyak-Kumkol pipeline has totaled 100 million tons since 2009, reports the Kazakh state oil and gas company KazMunayGaz.
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan is planning a debut sale of yuan bonds worth $500 million in April, according to Bloomberg.While digitization of the Kazakhstan-China border has eliminated “live queues” of cargo trucks, the system has glitches that can still result in lengthy delays for cargo trying to transit the border.
The new electronic system’s algorithms result in errors sending freight to a Chinese temporary storage warehouse awaiting a digital slot, according to Mybuh.kz.Such errors can lead to weeks-long delays.
China aims to boost grain production capacity to 725 million metric tons over 2026-2030, potentially decreasing the demand for imports.That can have ramifications for Kazakh grain exporters, according to an analysis by InBusiness.kz.
However, specific types of grain may remain in demand.For example, China is expected to increase barley imports from 10.25 million tons to 10.5 million tons during in 2025/26 production season, writes APK-info citing the CEO of Beijing Lianghai Zhichuang Technology Co., Ltd.
Kazakhstan is among the Top 3 countries where Chinese cars hold the largest market share, behind only Russia and Belarus, which, like Kazakhstan, are members of the Eurasian Economic Union, according to an analysis by Autostat.
Chinese autos accounted for more than 38 percent of all car sales in Kazakhstan in 2025.Market share is expected to reach 42 percent in 2026.Kazakhstan intends to emulate the PRC’s example and restrict vehicle traffic on even or odd days to reduce air pollution in major cities, reports Bes.Media.
Almaty has reportedly approved an even-odd plan, although no introduction date has been announced.The report cited Ecology Minister Yerlan Nysanbayev as saying that 748,000 vehicles are currently registered in Almaty, with another estimated 400,000 entering the city daily. “When you look at it closely, it becomes clear that the entire suburban workforce commutes into Almaty—primarily engaged in passenger transport services, specifically taxis,” Nysanabayev is quoted as saying. “Taken together, such [even-odd] measures can contribute to improving the overall [environmental] situation.” A Kazakh-language editor and cultural researcher, Adil Semeykhanuly, has reportedly received a six-and-a-half-year prison sentence in China’s Xinjiang Province after conviction on vague charges that he “negatively propagated” and “formed a separate public opinion” of the teachings of the Kazakh poet Abai Kunanbaev (18451904), according to Bitter Winter.
Prior to his sentencing, Semeykhanuly had spent more than a year in pre-trial detention and house arrest.According to local media reports, four other Kazakh-language editors and translators have recently experienced persecution at the hands of Chinese authorities. “Colleagues describe the series of arrests as part of an intensifying crackdown on Kazakh language publishing, translation work, and cultural expression in Xinjiang,” the Bitter Winter account states.
Italy-based Bitter Winter describes itself as “an online magazine on religious liberty and human rights in China.” Kyrgyzstan In response to the turmoil in the Persian Gulf, the Kyrgyz government amended a ban, introduced in 2019, on the importation of crude oil and petroleum products by road.
The amendment exempts gasoline and diesel fuel imported from China until December 31st, 2026, writes 24.kg, adding that the move is specifically intended to improve energy security amid disruptions caused by the Iran conflict.
At the same time, Beijing has told China’s top oil refiners to suspend gas and diesel exports due to the same disruptions, reports Bloomberg.A Chinese company, identified by Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Water Resources as “China Road,” has received a second contract this month, this one worth about $10 million, to modernize the Kara Unkur-Sai irrigation system in the Jalal-Abad region, according to Open.kg.
Earlier in March, the company was awarded a contract to build water treatment facilities in the Chui region.The Kyrgyz government is lobbying for a visa-free regime with China, but Beijing insists that Kyrgyzstan introduce visa-free travel unilaterally first.
So far, Bishkek has refused to make such a move, writes Akachabar.kg citing Kyrgyzstan’s deputy foreign minister.Tajikistan Ten children with congenital heart defects will receive free surgeries and medical care in China, the Tajik Ministry of Health has announced.
Tajik doctors will also have opportunities to study in China to “learn from the advanced experience of Chinese specialists, which will contribute to the introduction of new treatment methods in the republic in the future,” a ministry statement noted.
Turkmenistan The Chinese embassy in Ashgabat is sponsoring an initiative to expand the number of Turkmen students in China.Turkmenistan will hold a large-scale online exhibition, Study in China, which will allow Turkmen applicants to attend 30-minute presentations from Chinese universities, delivered exclusively in Russian and covering topics ranging from scholarships, choosing in-demand majors, and campus living conditions.
Specifically, six Chinese science flagship universities will be featured, including Peking University and Shanghai JiaotongUniversity.A recent Chinese-Turkmen working group meeting on humanitarian cooperation, chaired by the Chinese and Turkmen deputy culture ministers, signed a protocol “to strengthen the legal and contractual framework” covering joint work.