Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 21
By Rahim Zamanov - Trend:
Finnish investors are ready to invest in Iran's Tehran-Shomal (northern provinces) freeway once the U.S.-led sanctions on the country are lifted, Deputy Roads and Urban Development Minister Ali Nourzad said on Jan. 21, the Iranian ISNA News Agency reported.
"The Roads and Urban Development Ministry plans to use the full capacity of the private sector for renewing the country's roads and infrastructures," he explained.
"Currently Iran is not able to use European investors in roads and transportation projects," Nourzad said.
Deputy Director of Iran's Construction and Development of Transportation Infrastructure Company, Hassan Ahmadi-Nouri, said on Jan. 7 that the first section of Tehran-Shomal (northern provinces) freeway would be built in two years, the ISNA News Agency reported on Jan. 7.
"The 32-kilometer section of the freeway will be built in 18-24 months," Ahmadi-Nouri said.
He went on to note that Bonyad (Mostazafan Fourndation) is carrying out the project.
China's SPA Company was previously in charge of construction of the first section of the freeway.
"The physical progress of the first section of the project is about one percent per month," he said, adding that the section is 42 per cent complete.
Iran's Khatam-ol-Anbia headquarters head, Abdollah Abdollaian, on Dec. 14 denied the rumors that the headquarters would withdraw from the construction operation of Tehran-Shomal (northern provinces) freeway, the Mehr News Agency reported.
"We recently held talks with the roads and urban development ministry officials and they denied the rumors as well," he said.
"If the needed funds are provided, Khatam-ol-Anbia headquarters will be able to finish the project in 36 months," Abdollahi explained.
He went on to note that constructing Tehran-Shomal highway is not more complicated than building oil and gas refineries and pipelines.
Khatam-ol-Anbia headquarters has carried out many oil and gas projects in the country.
Deputy Roads and Urban Development Minister Ahmad Majidi said on Dec. 2 that Iran's Khatam-ol-Anbia has been withdrawn from the construction operation of Tehran-Shomal (northern provinces) freeway, Fars news agency reported.
"The Bonyad (Mostazafan Fourndation) also will not take part in the construction operation of the second and third sections of the highway, except for Alborz tunnel in the second section," the Tasnim News Agency quoted Majidi as saying.
He went on to note that the sections two and three of the project will come on stream at the estimated cost of 80 trillion rials (some $2.66 billion based on the price of USD at the free market).
"The ministry will soon choose a contractor for the 71-kilometer long project in a fair bid," he said.
Bonyad (Mostazafan Fourndation) representative, Rahmatollah Sadeqian, said back in May that the Roads and Urban Development ministry has not fulfilled its financial commitments regarding the project, the Mehr News Agency reported.
He went on to note that ministry owes over 6.8 trillion rials (some $226.6 million) to Bonyad, he said, noting that according to the Majlis (parliament) Research Center, the ministry owes over 63 trillion rials (approximately $2.1 billion) to all the contractors.
Bonyad has been in charge of carrying out the section 2 and 3 of the project, but in April the Roads and Urban Development ministry announced that it has chosen a new contractor for the mentioned sections.
Former Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Ahmad Sadeqi, announced on April 13 that with then President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's order, Iran's Khatam-ol-Anbia headquarters would construct sections two and three of Tehran-Shomal freeway.
The construction plan of Tehran-Shomal freeway was started in 1997.
Khatam-ol Anbia Construction Headquarters is affiliated with the Islamic Republic of Iran Guard Corps (IRGC).
Khatam-ol-Anbia is a giant firm with 25,000 employees. It controls over 812 registered companies inside and outside Iran. Some 10 per cent of the company's employees are IRGC members and the rest are contractors. The company is connected to Iran's oil and gas industry.
On April 25, 2009, a consortium controlled by Khatam-ol-Anbia purchased a 51.18 per cent controlling stake in Iran's naval-industrial giant South Pars. In May 2010, the Iranian government granted Khatam-ol-Anbia the rights to develop phases 13, 14, 22, 23 and 24 of South Pars. On April 30, 2011, Iran's Oil Ministry granted two no-tender contracts to the company for the development of the Halgan and Sefid Baghoon gas fields in South Pars.