Kazakhstan’s Maritime Companies Earn More From Vessel Charters Than Shipping

Kazakhstan’s maritime companies earned 19.9 billion tenge from chartering vessels with crews between January and July 2026, compared with 18.1 billion tenge from cargo and passenger transport. Meanwhile, the volume of cargo shipped across the Caspian Sea rose by 7.2% year on year to 2.42 million tons, Orda.kz reports.

Cargo Volumes Rise

International Caspian Sea Day is observed on August 12. To mark the occasion, Orda.kz reviewed Kazakhstan’s latest maritime transport statistics.

Kazakh maritime companies carried 2.42 million tons of cargo during the first seven months of the year, up from 2.26 million tons during the same period in 2025. This represents an increase of 163,000 tons, or 7.2%.

Freight turnover rose even faster, increasing by 18% from 1.04 billion to 1.23 billion ton-kilometers. Since this indicator grew faster than cargo volume, the average shipping distance also increased.

All maritime cargo and passenger traffic recorded in the statistics was handled in the Mangystau region. In the Atyrau region, maritime companies generated revenue only by chartering vessels with crews, earning 4.9 billion tenge.

Passenger numbers increased 2.4-fold to 31,400. However, passenger services generated only 82.9 million tenge. Cargo transport and vessel charters remain the industry’s main sources of revenue.

Foreign Carriers Lose Ground

Private Kazakh companies carried 2.3 million tons, accounting for 95% of all maritime cargo. Their freight volume increased by 28% over the year.

Foreign companies, by contrast, carried only 120,000 tons — almost 75% less than a year earlier. Their share of maritime freight fell from 21% to 5%.

Despite this growth, maritime transport still plays a limited role in Kazakhstan’s overall transport system, accounting for less than 0.5% of all cargo carried nationwide.

Original author: Alexander Zhdanov

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