Transportation Tips for Cargo from Estonia to Europe, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey. Opportunities for Cargo Transportation in Estonia

Estonia is a Baltic state, a former Soviet republic. In terms of economic development, among post-socialist countries, Estonia ranks third, behind Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The GDP per capita exceeds $22,000, significantly surpassing the indicators of other former USSR republics. The service sector in the Estonian economy accounts for about 70%, which corresponds to the trends of the most developed economies in the world. The most developed industries are: energy, machine engineering, chemical, pulp and paper, and woodworking industries.

Infrastructure for Cargo Transportation and Types of Transport in Estonia

Estonia has created significant infrastructure for all modern types of cargo transportation. Trucks, airplanes, rolling stock of railways, and sea and river vessels can be used for cargo delivery.

Estonia has a favorable geographical location. The country has land borders with Russia and Latvia. However, access to the Baltic Sea and the presence of well-equipped ports make the country's territory an important transit corridor, both to the EU and to Russia, and through it to the other republics of the former Soviet Union.

State of Infrastructure for Cargo Transportation by Road

By world standards, the condition of roads in Estonia is average; in the global ranking of 137 countries, Estonian roads ranked 38th in this indicator. However, it is worth understanding that 99 other countries are ranked lower, and most of the former Soviet republics are indeed below. Only Azerbaijan and Lithuania are higher, in 36th and 37th positions, respectively. Thus, the condition of Estonian roads is quite decent and adequately ensures the transportation of cargo by road. The entire network of roads in Estonia has a length of 58,412 km, with a solid surface on 10,427 km of roads.

Opportunities for Air Cargo Transportation

Air transportation is the most expensive way to transport cargo. It is usually used for the delivery of perishable valuable goods. The infrastructure for such cargo transportation has been established in Estonia. The country has 18 airports, 13 of which have solid surfaces on the runways. The main Estonian airports are located in the cities of:

• Kuressaare.
• Kärdla.
• Pärnu.
• Tallinn.
• Tartu.

Opportunities for Water Cargo Delivery

Estonia has infrastructure for both sea and river transport. The length of internal waterways accessible for vessels with a deadweight of over 500 tons is 335 km, of which 320 are accessible year-round. The main water artery of the country is the Narva River and its tributary, the Emajõgi.

The country's sea ports are located on the Baltic Sea. The main ones are in the cities of:

• Tallinn.
• Kuivastu.
• Pärnu.
• Muuga.
• Kunda.
• Sillamäe.

Rail Transport in Estonia

The total length of Estonian railways is 1,196 km. 133 km of tracks are electrified. For shippers and logistics professionals from the former Soviet Union countries, it is important that the gauge of Estonian railways is 1,520 mm. The same gauge is used in all former USSR countries. Accordingly, cargo transportation and transit can be carried out on the railways of Estonia without transshipment along the way.

Export Goods of Estonia

The main Estonian export goods, in terms of sales volume in monetary terms, are: equipment for radio and television broadcasting, petroleum products, cars, quickly assembled structures, and lumber.