Construction works on Kars-Nakhchivan railway to be intensified

Baku, Azerbaijan, April 3
By Emil Ismayilov - Trend:

More active work on the creation of Nakhchivan-Kars (Turkey) railway link will be started after the commissioning of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, Azerbaijan Railways JSC said.

Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is in the blockade because of Armenia`s occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani lands. The communication with NAR is implemented either by air or by road through Iran. Completion of the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, which would connect Azerbaijan and Turkey will be possible by mid-2015.

"The issue of the creation of the Nakhchivan-Kars railway is relevant and a more active process in the framework of this project will proceed after the commissioning of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway," head of the company's press-service, Nadir Azmammadov said.

As the head of the Azerbaijan Railways company Arif Asgarov told earlier, the Azerbaijani side will re-develop the railway independently however, the construction process in the Turkish section will also be considered. Turkish side can implement this work independently, but Azerbaijani side`s participation in any form in this process is not excluded.

It is planned to reconstruct the section from the border with Iran to Nakhchivan's Sadarak district, and to lay 10 more kilometres of lines with the Nakhchivan- Kars railway project.

One billion manat is required for the Nakhchivan-Kars railway project's implementation, according to the preliminary data.

Touching upon the work within the establishment of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, Azmammadov noted that works continue, and they are carried out in accordance with the set schedule.

Within the framework of preparation for commissioning of this railway, a schedule will be worked out later - both freight and passenger trains, according to the company`s spokesperson. "But first and foremost, this railroad is important from the point of cargo transportation," he said.

It is planned to construct a new 105-kilometre long railroad branch line under the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars project.

Aside from that, the Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Marabda railway section will be reconstructed in Georgia, increasing its capacity to 15 million tons of cargo per year.

It is also planned to build a station at Akhalkalaki for transition of trains from rail tracks in Georgia to the European ones.

The corridor's peak capacity will be 17 million tons of cargo per year. At the initial stage this figure will stand at one million passengers and 6.5 million tons of cargo.

The official exchange rate on April 3 is 0,7843 AZN/USD.

Translated by: S.I.
Edited by SI