DUSHANBE, March 28, Asia-Plus — Builders have started to dig the tunnel under the Shahriston Pass all over again, Asia-Plus has learned from Qodir Saidov, the executive director of the unit for implementation of the Dushanbe-Khujand-Chanak highway rehabilitation project.
According to him, it is connected with the displacement of the rocks that occurred at the northern portal of the tunnel last November. “Specialists studied the site and builders had to start to dig the tunnel all over again in other place that will lead to increase of length of the automotive tunnel from 5,042 meters to 5,253 meters and length of the vent tunnel from 5,075 meters to 5,305 meters,” the executive director said, adding that in connection with that, the contractor, China’s company China Road, recruited additional manpower. However, it will not have an effect on the project budget estimated at $78.9 million, Saidov said.
The executive director noted that $10.2 million of credit funds had to date been drawn and said that they would make every effort to finish the tunnel by the time fixed – August 2009.
We will recall that Chinese company China Road has won the tender for implementation of the Dushanbe-Khujand-Chanak (Uzbek border town) highway rehabilitation project and Beijing in 2006 offered Tajikistan grants and loans to fund the project. Rehabilitation of the road and construction of a tunnel under the Shahriston pass started in July 2006.
The tunnel is scheduled to be finished by August 2009, while the rehabilitation of the highway from Dushanbe to Chanak will have been completed by August 2008.
A total project cost is estimated at some $296 million, including $281.2 million provided by the Chinese government in a form of a long-term loan. The loan carries a 20-year period and an interest rate of 2 percent per annum. The remaining some $14 million are provided by the government of Tajikistan.
