The first international freight transportation service is launched at Kép station last week. VNA/VNS Photo Đồng Thúy

BẮC GIANG — The Kép railway station in the northern province of Bắc Giang has launched its international freight transportation services.

In his remarks at a ceremony on Saturday last week, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Council Nghiêm Xuân Hưởng stressed that such international services were expected to help ease the congestion of goods in the border area and pressure on the two present international railway stations – Đồng Đăng and Yên Viên.

The services also enabled Bắc Giang to open an international border gate in the locality, he added.

The Ministry of Transport said that in implementing the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 03/CT- TTg, the transport sector had sped up the implementation of yearly plans and projects since the beginning of this year, including those on international freight transportation services, thus facilitating cross-border exporting activities.

Kép station has seen its infrastructure upgraded after the ministry decided to turn it into an international one, with all items now ready for the first phase of operation.

There will be a fleet of trains running from Kép to Đồng Đăng station in the border province of Lạng Sơn and then to China’s Pingxiang station.

The Kép station’s handling capacity is from 80 to 100 carriages or containers per day. Freight includes electronics and industrial products, construction materials, industrial wood, and ore.

A bonded warehouse is expected to be built at the station to serve the import and export activities of enterprises in Bắc Giang and Bắc Ninh provinces and neighbouring localities. It specialises in receiving refrigerated containers transported from the south which will then be exported to China.

Currently, the VNR is managing several international freight terminals, including Lào Cai, Yên Viên, Hải Phòng, Đồng Đăng and Giáp Bát.

The demand for international freight railway transportation grows 6 per cent annually. Notably, since 2022, about half of the cargo has been transported in containers. — VNS