Tbilisi City Hall has begun the process of terminating the agreement with Russia’s Metrovagonmash, which was supposed to supply rail cars to the Tbilisi metro, due to international sanctions. The contract for metro trains will be terminated.
“On 19 May 2023, our international partners imposed sanctions against this company. As you know, Georgia is implementing international financial sanctions. Accordingly, the Municipality of Tbilisi will not cooperate with the sanctioned company and will cancel the agreement with Metrovagonmash,” a press release said, according to Report.az and TASS.
The purchase of new metro trains by the Tbilisi City Hall from the Russian company Metrovagonmash has become a subject of heated debate, as the company is under sanction by Ukraine and its beneficial owners are billionaires Iskander Makhmudov and Andrey Bokarev, both under sanctions imposed by the UK.
The value of the contract for metro trains is €49 million and it is financed by a loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. According to Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, the Tbilisi City Hall did not want to sign a contract with the company and claims they were “forced” to do so. Kaladze says that City Hall employees and the EBRD have been working on the issue for several months.
“The tender for the purchase of metro trains conducted by the Tbilisi Transport Company in 2021 was executed in accordance with EBRD Procurement Policies and Rules. The contract was awarded to the supplier JSC Metrowagonmash. The new rolling stock will improve the reliability, safety and efficiency of public transport and provide commuters with a comfortable and environmentally friendly means of transport,” the bank recently explained.
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