Kars-Akhalkalaki railway construction set to start in 2007

Turkey and Azerbaijan will pay the USD 450 million that the 300 kilometre railway will cost to build. USD 200-300 million of this will be spent to build the 227 kilometre Georgian part of the railway. 191 kilometres of track in Georgia need to be repaired, and 36 built from scratch. The money will be given to Georgian Railways as an interest free loan.

Construction of the railway, which will link Europe to china via Georgian territory, should be completed in about 2-3 years. The Georgian government hopes to receive about USD 150 million annually once the railway is up and running, reports the newspaper Rezonansi.

/www.messenger.com.ge/