The Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of Armenia Kristine Ghalechyan, along with representatives of the Road Department Fund, held a meeting with the delegation of the European Investment Bank (EIB) led by Rafał Rybacki.
According to the ministry's press service, the discussions focused on road construction programs in Armenia co-financed by the EIB. Special attention was given to the current state and upcoming actions for the construction of the Sisian-Kajaran section (tranche-4) of the North-South highway. The EIB, together with the EBRD, will finance the construction of the southern section of the Sisian-Kajaran road, which is 24.25 km long. For this purpose, a loan of €137 million is planned to be secured from the EIB.
The meeting also covered the construction process of the 23-kilometer Landjik-Gyumri road (tranche-3 North-South), which is nearing completion, and the program for constructing the Gyumri bypass road (tranche-5). An application has been submitted for an EU grant to update the project documentation for the Gyumri bypass road, which has been approved under the Eastern Partnership Infrastructure Investment in Transport (EPIC) toolkit.
Additionally, the restoration of damaged sections of the M-6 interstate road due to floods was discussed, as well as potential EIB support in this matter. It was noted that climate change significantly impacts road infrastructure, and it is essential to consider climate risks when developing restoration projects.
Earlier, BMG reported that "North-South" is the largest investment transport project in the history of independent Armenia. It began construction in 2009 with the aim of connecting the south of the country with the north. This will create an international transport corridor providing uninterrupted transportation of goods from the Persian Gulf to the Black Sea.
Currently, the country's territory with a population of three million is crossed by road transport on average in 11 hours. The new 556-kilometer corridor is expected to halve this time.
Despite the project's importance for Armenia, "North-South" is being built very slowly. The construction of the highway was supposed to be completed by 2019, but so far only 5-6% of the route's length has been put into operation.
Authorities hope to complete the highway construction within 8-9 years.
