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Central Asia · rail from western China

Rail and road freight from China to Kazakhstan

China to Kazakhstan

Alashankou – Dostyk · Khorgos – Altynkol · Almaty · Saryagash · Kuryk · Aktau · Alat

Corridor map: China to KazakhstanMap of land corridors between China and Kazakhstan, drawn on one real projection with places at their latitude and longitude: Alashankou – Dostyk · Khorgos – Altynkol · Almaty · Saryagash · Kuryk · Aktau · Alat. Kazakhstan is outlined and shaded. Lines join the listed places and are not surveyed tracks or schedules. KAZAKHSTANCHINAUZBEKISTANKYRGYZSTANRUSSIATURKMENISTANAZERBAIJANTAJIKISTAN 40°N50°N50°E60°E70°E80°E Alashankou – DostykKhorgos – AltynkolAlmatySaryagashKurykAktauAlat 250 km Lines join the listed places; they are not surveyed tracks. Border crossingOrigin / destination
Corridor map: China to KazakhstanMap of land corridors between China and Kazakhstan, drawn on one real projection with places at their latitude and longitude: Alashankou – Dostyk · Khorgos – Altynkol · Almaty · Saryagash · Kuryk · Aktau · Alat. Kazakhstan is outlined and shaded. Lines join the listed places and are not surveyed tracks or schedules. KAZAKHSTANRUSSIATURKMENISTANIRAN 30°N40°N50°N60°N50°E60°E70°E80°E Alashankou – DostykKhorgos – AltynkolAlmatySaryagash 1000 km
  1. Alashankou – DostykBorder crossing
  2. Khorgos – AltynkolBorder crossing
  3. Almaty
  4. SaryagashBorder crossing
  5. Kuryk
  6. Aktau
  7. Alat

Almost every overland route from China to Central Asia and to the Middle Corridor starts by crossing Kazakhstan. The border stations on the Kazakh side are where the gauge changes, where private wagon owners enter the picture and where the Caspian ports begin the second half of the journey to the Caucasus.

Ask about Kazakhstan All rail & road corridors

At a glance

Kazakhstan: three facts that shape the lane

Border capacity

Two gateways, both growing

Khorgos Gateway handled over 372,000 TEU in 2025 and added ten broad-gauge tracks in the year;1 at Dostyk, opposite Alashankou, the transhipment terminal doubled its capacity to 320,000 TEU.2

Wagons

Supply is negotiated with private owners

CAREC notes that wagon supply in Kazakhstan was privatised, so a shipper deals with private wagon owners and not with one railway authority.3

Road rules

ADR in force since 2001

Kazakhstan acceded to ADR on 26 July 2001,4 so a truck taking a class 9 load from a dry port or rail terminal works inside the European road agreement.

The corridor

Why a Kazakh stop can hold a lithium load

The country is also where a downstream problem becomes a local one. When Kazakhstan Railways banned all cargo types to stations in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan via Saryagash for three days in November 2025, more than 8,800 railcars had accumulated.5 The same network feeds the Caspian: the OECD puts Aktau's throughput capacity at about 15 million tonnes, or 21 million with Kuryk.6

For a battery shipment this means three questions on one page of paperwork: which gate, which wagon and which onward destination. Acceptance of lithium batteries is screened case by case, subject to operator and country acceptance, and nothing here is an offer of a scheduled service.

An elevated electrified railway line with overhead wires beside green trees

Places on this page's map

  • Alashankou – Dostyk. The northern Chinese–Kazakh rail crossing, in Xinjiang.
  • Khorgos – Altynkol. The second rail gate, with the Khorgos Gateway dry port on the Kazakh side.
  • Almaty. The main commercial city reached from both gates.
  • Saryagash. The border station towards Uzbekistan.
  • Kuryk and Aktau. The Caspian ports used by Middle Corridor traffic.

Route pages

Lanes to Kazakhstan from inland Chinese cities

Rail route

Yiwu → Almaty

Yiwu to Almaty by rail through Khorgos and Altynkol: Chinese rail consignment documents, X-ray and radiation checks at the gauge break, wagon supply and the road from Khorgos to Almaty.

Read the Yiwu to Almaty route

Questions

Kazakhstan: questions we are asked

Two rail gates serve the border, Alashankou–Dostyk and Khorgos–Altynkol. The operator decides the gate, and we state it in the quote scope.

Yes. Kazakhstan has been a party since 26 July 2001.4

By sea instead

Compare with sea freight from China

Sea routes

Nine Chinese ports, one hub

Sea freight leaves from Shenzhen, Shanghai, Ningbo, Qingdao, Tianjin, Guangzhou, Xiamen, Dalian and Lianyungang. See all sea routes from China.

Choosing a mode

Each mode accepts lithium batteries on its own terms

Rail, road and sea operators apply different acceptance rules, and a shipment that is refused on one mode can sometimes be planned on another. We screen the cargo first and name the mode afterwards.

References

Where these points come from

  1. Khorgos Gateway Boosts Transit Capacity, Handles Over 372,000 TEUs in 2025 (The Astana Times, February 2026)
  2. Dostyk TransTerminal doubles its transhipment capacity (PTC Holding)
  3. CAREC Corridor Performance Measurement and Monitoring, 2022 report: Rail transport (CAREC Program)
  4. Status of ADR – United Nations Treaty Collection, chapter XI-B-14 (United Nations Treaty Collection)
  5. Kazakhstan temporarily restricts rail freight transportation to Central Asian countries (Asia-Plus, 25 November 2025)
  6. Realising the Potential of the Middle Corridor (OECD)

Next step

Ask about China → Kazakhstan

Ask about China → Kazakhstan

Origin and destination are filled in; add the cargo facts you have.

Sending this form starts a review; it does not confirm carriage. Full enquiry form

After you send it

We check operator and country acceptance for China → Kazakhstan before any booking, and ask for missing battery documents first.

All rail & road corridors · Sea routes from China

Need China → Kazakhstan reviewed?

Share the cargo facts; we review the lane in writing.

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