Former autonomous republic of Ukraine, Crimea, has decided earlier this year to adhere to Russia, a process representing the complete integration of the economic and legal system to that of Russia. For the transport sector, this means both adapting legislation and consolidating cooperation and the development of connections to facilitate traffic between the two parties.
As of March, the central authorities of Russia have approached the problem of transport organisation in Crimea. President Vladimir Putin has launched the idea of building the bridge across Kerci Strait to provide connection between the Black Sea and the Azov Sea, but also to provide connections to the future industrial area in Kerci. “The main industrial cluster to be built in Kerci Peninsula is a project to be developed in conformity with the construction plan of the bridge”, declared Rustam Temirgaliyev, Deputy Prime Minister of Crimea, in an interview for RIA Novosti.
The estimated cost of the bridge construction has been increased three times in the past months. The national construction company, Avtodor, responsible for the supervision of design works, has selected the option of bridge with mixed, road and railway, infrastructure. 11.7 km will be built at a cost of RUB 283 Billion (USD 8.1 Billion). According to the central press, the company would have rejected other proposals. The possibility of building a tunnel instead of the bridge has also been considered, but Avtodor officials have refuted this option on financial grounds. In real terms, the construction of the bridge is worth RUB 150 Billion (USD 4.3 Billion), but the increasing cost is due to the construction of 25 km of roads and 83 km of railways to connect the bridge to the existing transport network. According to price estimates, all these aspects make Kerci the most expensive bridge in Russia.
In March, officials of transport authorities said the cost of the project could reach RUB 50 Billion (USD 1.3 Billion) and its cost could increase up to RUB 238 Billion (USD 8.1 Billion), according to the local media. A bridge toll will be introduced for which Avtodor estimates revenues from RUB 142 Billion to RUB 228 Billion (USD 4-6.5 Billion) for the next 20 years. Russian Railways has initially declared that it could build the railway infrastructure for this bridge, but investors from China and South Korea are also interested to participate in this project.
China could be the first foreign investor in Crimea’s economy, as Chinese companies have announced that they could participate in the construction project, Kommersant newspaper informs. Thus, China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) and China International Fund Ltd. (CIF) plan to allocate USD 3 Million. However, cooperation with China doesn’t mean that Russian companies would not participate in the projects. Several domestic companies have already expressed interest in building the bridge. The steps prior to project implementation include either a tender or direct conclusion of the contract with a group of companies.
The plans of the project, financial and construction models will be completed as fast as possible, and engineering studies, as well as technical and economic evaluations will be developed until November.
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