Kazakhstan has opened the first $229m section of its Atyrau-Aktau road.

The 400km section stretches between Karabatan and Beyneu, the remainder is still under construction.

The section has been funded by a $119m loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) with the rest funded by the Kazakh state.

The Atyrau-Aktau road project involves building a 900km road to link the country’s oil industry hub in the western part to its main Seaport on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea.

The road is part of the northern section of the Traceca Corridor – a transport route between Europe and Asia and an alternative to the TransSiberian route.