Uzbekistan Railways held a ceremony to launch the electrified line Angren-Pap and the opening of a tunnel built under the project.
The project included the construction and electrification of the two sections of the railway with he construction of a line passing through a mountain pass Kamchik. The 123.1 km line includes a 19.2 km long tunnel. The tunnel is Central Asia’s longest railway tunnel and it has been completed in May 2016. The 19.2 kilometer tunnel goes through Qurama Mountains and is a key cooperation project in the China-proposed “Belt and Road” initiative, which is expected to reduce regional transportation costs and help boost trade and economy.
The value of the project was USD 1.6 billion, of which USD 810 million were spent for the construction of the railway tunnel. The project was financed by the World Bank (USD 195 million loan approved in 2015), USD 1 billion was provided from the Uzbekistan Railways own funds, the state budget and the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan, and USD 350 million from China Exim Bank.
Uzbekistan started construction of the Angren-Pap new electrified railway in July 2013. The railway line runs through the Kamchik pass and link the three oblasts in the east of the country – Andijan, Namangan and Fergana – with the remaining part of Uzbekistan.
The national rail company is forecasting about 600,000 passengers to use the new infrastructure and about 4.6 million tons goods to be transported during the first year of operation. The project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 200,000 tons annually.
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