In 2016–2018, high yields, insufficient development of grain storage infrastructure led to panic demand for transportation in the
It should be noted that the rates for use of grain wagons in 2018–2019 were the highest both in tenge and in dollars. For this reason the fleet of Kazakhstani owners has grown almost 2 times since 2018.
The new fleet does not require significant investments for several years, so traders began to actively acquire wagons without thinking much about its further maintenance. However, the low yields of recent years, increased competition led to stagnation of rates for use of wagons on the market, and costs on the contrary are increasing.
So the most expensive worn part of the wagon is wheel pairs, there are four of them on each wagon, they come to full wear by an average of 7–8 years of operation. In 2022, about 24% of the fleet of other owners of the Republic of Kazakhstan will cross the
The pandemic significantly increased the demand for Chinese products from Europe and the United States. At the same time, the suspension of sea and air traffic due to quarantine measures in China led to an increase in container traffic by rail. Freight rail transportation showed its stability and the possibility of contactless transportation of goods. However, there is a flipside of the coin. The increased demand for containers led to an increase in the cost of metal, which directly led to an increase in the cost of spare parts for wagons. So the price of wheelsets at the end of 2021 increased by 20–27%, depending on component parts.
In addition, the increase in wagon transportation of other goods led to an increase in the turnover of wagons and the need to maintain a larger fleet, while the cost of new wagons also increased.
Therefore, the growth of industrial inflation and the cost of repairs will lead to a forced increase in tariffs for use of wagons in 2022, in order to maintain the working fleet in good condition and ensure uninterrupted grain transportation.