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Russia’s FESCO Transportation Group has launched a direct rail service, the “Vietnam Shuttle” from Vietnam to Moscow via China and Mongolia in partnership with logistics operator Ratraco (a subsidiary of Vietnam Railways), the company has said.
The average transit time along the Vietnam Shuttle route is 35 days. Departures from Vietnam are carried out weekly. All types of cargo are accepted for transport, except hazardous materials.
The first two batches of containers under the new service arrived at Silikatnaya station in Moscow from Hanoi on July 8 and 25. One of Russia’s largest clothing retail chains was the recipient.
The first stage of the shipment includes dispatching containers by rail from the Vietnamese cities of Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Haiphong, and Danang to Chengdu, China. Then, containers are loaded onto the group’s regular trains running from Chengdu through the land border crossings Erlian (China) – Zamyn-Uud (Mongolia) – Naushki (Russia) and onward to Moscow.
German Maslov, FESCO’s Liner and Logistics Division Vice President said “The first FESCO rail service from Vietnam to Russia offers Russian importers another convenient way to deliver cargo from Southeast Asia, which may well be comparable in delivery time to the traditional intermodal route through Far Eastern ports. Together with our partners at Ratraco, we plan to ramp up FESCO Vietnam Shuttle to regular departures up to twice a week, and in the future, given favorable market conditions, to begin dispatching full container trains from key cities in Vietnam.”
Bilateral trade between Russia and Vietnam has seen significant growth, with the two-way trade reaching US$4.69 billion in 2024, a 40% increase compared to the previous year. Vietnam is Russia’s largest trading partner in ASEAN, while Russia is one of Vietnam’s top five European trading partners. Russia and Vietnam have a free trade agreement via the Eurasian Economic Union, with Vietnam a major source of garments, fruit and seafood to Russia.
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