Akhalkalaki: An event marking the commissioning of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway line following its modernization will be held on June 2 at the Akhalkalaki Railway and Logistics Complex in Georgia. Officials from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Trkiye, along with heads of railway and port administrations, and representatives from logistics companies are set to attend the event.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the modernization of the BTK railway line was confirmed during a meeting on May 18 in Baku. The meeting, attended by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze, resulted in the signing of a protocol. Azerbaijan's Minister of Digital Development and Transport, Rashad Nabiyev, and Georgia's Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mariam Kvrivishvili, signed the Protocol of the 41st Meeting of the Coordination Council. The document confirmed the completion and final acceptance of the modernization works on the railway section from Marabda to the border with the Republic of Trkiye (Kartsakhi).

In 2024, Azerbaijan Railways CJSC (ADY) completed modernization works on the 184-kilometer section of the BTK railway in Georgia. This project aimed to enhance the capacity of this segment of the Middle Corridor. The five-phase project involved the development of 13 railway stations, 55 bridges, 8 traction substations, and 320 buildings and engineering structures, including new bridges, overpasses, and crossings.

As part of the project, a new 30.3-kilometer railway line and a wheelset-changing station were constructed. Rehabilitation and reconstruction works were also carried out on 153.1 kilometers of the existing railway infrastructure. The completed works have significantly increased the annual freight capacity of the BTK railway, raising it from 1 million tons to 5 million tons. This transformation has positioned the route as one of the most functional overland transport corridors connecting China and Central Asia with Europe.