DUSHANBE, July 29, 2013, Asia-Plus — The Ministry of Transport (MoT) offers the Government to review the issue of completion of construction of the Istiqlol Tunnel, which connects Dushanbe to the northern part of the country.
“We have applied to the Government asking to settle the problem of completion of construction of the Istiqlol Tunnel definitely. If Iran’s Saber International does not want to work, let it make way for others,” Tajik Minister of Transport, Nizom Hakimov, announced at a news conference in Dushanbe on July 29.
According to him, they have applied to international financial institutions, including the Asian Development Bank (ADB), regarding financing of the work to complete the construction of the tunnel. The ADB is reportedly ready to provide missing funds for the completion of the construction of the Istiqlol Tunnel.
The minister noted that an Iranian delegation was expected to arrive in Dushanbe last month to discuss the problem but it did not arrive.
Iranians have promised to provide additional 3 million U.S. dollars for the project, but they have provided only 1.1 million U.S. dollars so far, Hakimov said.
The document, which was signed in September 2011, reportedly provides for allocation of additional 6 million U.S. dollars for the completion of the construction of the Istiqlol Tunnel. This amount includes US$3 million grant provided by the Government of Iran and US$3 million provided by Tajikistan’s national budget.
Iran’s Saber International has been chosen to complete the construction of the tunnel and Iran was expected to complete the construction by the end of September.
The Istiqlol Tunnel, better known among the population as the Anzob Tunnel, has been built with assistance of Iranian specialists. Iran’s Saber International has constructed the Istiqlol Tunnel. The total project cost was estimated at 40 million US dollars, and Iran has provided US$10 million in a form of grant and extended a preferential loan worth US$21 million to Tajikistan. The tunnel makes the highway from Dushanbe to Khujand open for traffic the whole year round and drops the transit time by four to five hours. An official opening ceremony of the Istiqlol Tunnel was held in July 2007; however, some works have remained unfinished.
The Istiqlol Tunnel is a five kilometer long tunnel located 80 kilometers northwest of Dushanbe. It connects the Tajik capital to Tajikistan’s second largest city, Khujand. It is also a transit route between Dushanbe and Uzbekistan’s capital Tashkent. Previously, especially during the cold seasons, a lack of a direct link between northern and southern Tajikistan led to disruptions of commerce.
