On 7–9 September, Baku will host the international conference
and exhibition BLACK AND
CASPIAN FREIGHT FORUM 2026: corridors, infrastructure,
investments. This is the fifth edition of the forum,
and this year's theme is corridors, infrastructure and
investments.


The forum brings together the people who actually run the
infrastructure and the cargo flows between Asia, the Caspian, the
Black Sea and Europe: seaports and terminals, shipping and ferry
operators, railways, freight forwarders and cargo owners,
regulators, international financial institutions and investors.


We expect more than 150 delegates from 100 companies and over 20
countries.


Dates: 7–9 September 2026


Venue: Baku, Azerbaijan, Four Seasons Hotel
Baku


Format: conference, exhibition, pre-scheduled
B2B meetings, site visit to a logistics hub


Languages: English and Russian, with
simultaneous interpretation


Why Baku and why now


The Middle Corridor is working: cargo is moving, volumes are
growing, infrastructure is being built. Which is why one question
is being asked more often than any other right now: what are the
next steps in its development, and what investment will they take?
Ferry fleet, port capacity, customs procedures, digital
integration: work is going on in all these areas at once, and each
has its own circle of investors. Hence this year's theme:
corridors, infrastructure and investments. And Baku is the very
point where sea and land physically meet on the route, and where
the people who build the infrastructure, the people who keep the
cargo moving and the people who finance such projects will all be
in one room.


Key topics on the programme:



  • The Middle Corridor (TITR): what volumes and transit times can
    the route realistically handle in 2026–2027?

  • New branch lines and geopolitics: the Zangezur route (TRIPP)
    and the trans-Afghan direction, and how the corridor's strategic
    role is changing.

  • China's role in building up corridor capacity: current and
    planned projects, container trains, backhaul cargo.

  • Caspian shipping and ferries: new higher-capacity vessels,
    containerisation of the region, Ro-Ro growth and where rates are
    heading.

  • Port upgrades to 2030: berths, cranes, dredging, hinterland
    connectivity.

  • The structure of cargo flows: energy, grain, fertilisers,
    metals and critical minerals.

  • Digital infrastructure of the corridor: shared data exchange
    platforms, customs harmonisation, electronic documentation. Is
    there any real progress?

  • Where the money of the international financial institutions is
    going (EBRD, ADB, the World Bank, AIIB, EIB): which projects they
    finance, and on what terms.

  • The EU Global Gateway and the investment package for the
    Trans-Caspian route: how pledges turn into projects, how much has
    actually been financed, and what PPPs and blended finance
    deliver.

  • The legal and insurance landscape of regional logistics: how to
    manage risk on a multimodal route.


Who will be in the room:



  • Seaports, terminals and stevedores of the Black and Caspian
    Seas

  • Shipping, ferry and Ro-Ro operators, shipowners, agents and
    brokers

  • Railways, container train and wagon operators

  • Freight forwarders, multimodal operators, 3PL and 4PL
    providers

  • Cargo owners: energy, grain, fertilisers, metals, critical
    minerals, project cargo

  • International financial institutions, development banks and
    infrastructure funds

  • Private and strategic industry investors

  • Ministries of transport and economy, regulators, customs
    authorities

  • Industry associations and professional bodies

  • Dredging, engineering and port technology companies

  • Legal, insurance and survey companies


Three days of the forum:



  • 7 September - registration, networking,
    evening cocktail reception

  • 8 September - full conference day, exhibition,
    pre-scheduled B2B meetings, gala dinner (approximately 9:00 –
    22:00)

  • 9 September - site visit to a logistics
    hub


Advertising, sponsorship and exhibition


An exhibition area runs alongside the conference. Sponsorship
and advertising options, as well as exhibition stands, are arranged
individually: write to the organising committee and we will send
you the current packages.







We welcome media partners


We are open to media partnerships with industry associations and
specialist media. Terms are agreed individually: announcements and
publications, mutual logo placement, accreditation for your
correspondents, access to conference materials, discounts for your
members. Get in touch and we will put together a proposal tailored
to your audience.


Full information about the organiser and the event is on our
website: www.rdl.group


We invite everyone interested to join the forum, discuss
the issues that matter to the industry and find partners for new
routes and projects.


See you in Baku!


Best regards,


Roman Dedkov


Founder & CEO | RDL group


+38 (097) 927 35 05 (WhatsApp, Telegram)


+38 (093) 177 60 55


+370 691 98 6 98


[email protected]


www.rdl.group