HELSINKI - Finnish logistics services provider Nurminen Logistics has signed a letter of intent to build a railway across the Asian continent, which will shorten the cargo passage between Finland and China, local media reported Wednesday.

The letter was signed late last month with UTLC, a joint venture of the Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus state railways, to open a new railway route to China, news service Good News from Finland said in a report.

According to Nurminen Logistics, the railway connection will run from Finland to Central China via Kazakhstan. Transferring container transport from ocean shipping to railways will significantly shorten the transport time from Finland to China from 80 days to 20 days.

The new railway route is primarily designed for transit transport via Russia, said Olli Pohjanvirta, president and CEO of Nurminen Logistics.

He believed that a fast and regular railway connection to China will benefit European forest and mechanical engineering companies,

as well as operators importing seasonal goods from China to Europe.

Nurminen Logistics said that the first deliveries are scheduled to start from the last quarter of 2014.