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A major new eastern Siberian railfreight solution is due to be tackled in 2019.
After many years of efforts to secure the financing for a 353 km Arctic Circle railway line in Russia, construction work on the project is now set to begin in 2019. The corner stone for a 2.5 km bridge across the river Ob, between Labytnangi and Salekhard, was laid in a ceremony on 11 May. Once operations commence – in approximately five years – there will be a seamless east–west connection along the Arctic Circle, from Chum on the Pechora railway line to Vorkuta, via Salekhard and Nadym to Novy Urengoy. From there there is a line south, frequently used by cistern trains, which connects to the Trans-Siberian railway in Tyumen.
The Arctic Circle railway line is expected to cater mainly to the transport of oil, gas and ores. A sideline from Obskaya to the natural gas fields in Bovanenkovo, operated by Gazprom, as well as an extension to the port of Sabetta, at the northern tip of the Yamal Peninsula, which is a part of the overall project, will create a link to the Northeast Passage and thence to both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, an option which Russia is pushing strongly these days. Building costs for both lines, which will be financed through a public-private partnership with Gazprom, are estimated at approximately EUR 3 billion.
Source: ITJ
