ASTANA  - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development plans to invest 1.25 billion euros ($1.36 billion) in two Kazakh projects to boost the capacity of a China-Europe cargo transport route bypassing Russia, the head of the EBRD said on Friday.

The route, known as the Trans-Caspian or Middle Corridor, is shorter than a northern route through Russia and is becoming increasingly important for East-West trade given Western sanctions on Moscow due to its invasion of Ukraine.

The land and sea transport corridor for goods would be an economic boon for countries whose territories it crosses, including Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia.

"The Trans-Caspian project, I mean, the development of the connectivity as an alternative to the Russia trade pattern is very important," EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso told Reuters.

She said EBRD had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kazakh state railway company for a potential 750 million euro investment. The other project, worth 500 million euros, is to rehabilitate the Aktobe-Ulgaisyn road in Kazakhstan's Western Aktobe region, she said in an interview.

The bank is also investing in green energy projects in Kazakhstan and the Central Asian region as a whole, Renaud-Basso said, citing a battery energy storage project for renewable producers in Uzbekistan as an example.

EBRD also plans a 270 million euro deal with Kazakh state electric grid operator KEGOC to connect more renewable energy producers to the grid.

She said the bank, which this year bought a 5% stake in Kazakh flagship carrier Air Astana during its initial public offering, was keen to take part in more privatisation deals.

The EBRD expects Kazakhstan's economy to grow 5.5% next year compared with this year's 4% growth, partly due to the expansion of the giant Tengiz oilfield. ($1 = 0.9205 euros)

(Reporting by Tamara Vaal Writing by Olzhas Auyezov Editing by Ros Russell)