Samsun (Turkey), Feb 20 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Russia and Turkey officially opened the first railroad ferry link across the Black Sea Tuesday.
The ferry allows "delivery of cargo from Turkey to Russia and the countries of Central Asia and back in the shortest time possible and with the least cost," Russian Railways said in a statement.
"The ferry has been operated since December 2010 in a test mode. Its freight capacity last year alone increased threefold to over 40,000 tonnes," Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said at the launch ceremony.
The ferry service's capacity is expected to grow to 100,000 tonnes a year by the start of next year, Sokolov said.
The agreement establishing a rail-ferry link between the port of Caucasus in south Russia and the Turkish Black Sea port of Samsun was signed in May 2010.