Azerbaijan, Baku, July 1 / corr Trend E.Ismayilov /
The Azerbaijani Transport Ministry has established a working commission to develop the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic-Kars railway route, a ministry source reported this week.
The NAR is blockaded due to Armenia's occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory.
Senior Engineer at Azerbaijani Railways Gurban Nazirov will head the commission.
"Under the project, we plan to create a working commission. A relevant decree is expected shortly," the source said.
The source added that the section of the railway along Georgia's border with Turkey is being constructed according to schedule. Rehabilitation activities are being executed jointly by a Georgian company and the Azerbaijani Azertikintiservis, which won the tender. Plans include rehabilitating 160 kilometers of railway.
The construction of the Akhalkalaki Station will begin in 2010 and end in 2011.
A new 105-kilometer branch of the railway will be constructed as part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars project. Seventy-six kilometers will stretch through Turkey and 29 kilometers will traverse Georgia. Additionally, a 183-kilometer section of the railway - Akhalkalaki-Marabda-Tbilisi - will be rebuilt in Georgia to increase the railway's capacity to 15 million tons of freight per year.