TIRANA, December 18/ATA/ The government opened today the competition for building of the railway to connect Albania with Montenegro, while both countries share history, common traditions and the great aspiration to join the EU.
Deputy Prime Minister and also Minister of Infrastructure and Energy Belinda Balluku stated today at the ceremony for opening of the competition that this railway makes Albania part of the Pan-European corridors.
Attending the ceremony was also the EU Ambassador to Albania Silvio Gonzato.
“Following the very good progress with building of the railway that connects Tirana-Durres-Rinas International Airport, here’s another cornerstone laid in the Albanian railway”, she stated.
“It is a 120 km long railway line, which starts in Vora and ends in Han i Hotit and it will include 12 stations that will be built anew or reconstructed. This railway will have 12 bridges and there is also a tunnel located in Lezha area with a length of 320 m. On the other hand, the speed of this railway line is expected to be 120 km/h”, Balluku said further.
She also said that according to the feasibility study, the route from Vora to Han i Hotit will be covered in 2 hours, on average. On the other hand, there is expected that this railway line will have an annual flow of 2.3 million passengers and 900 thousand tons of cargo per year.
Balluku emphasized that the construction of this railway line has an impact not only on the economic and social development of the country, but also for the countries of the Western Balkans.
“The commissioning of Vora-Hani i Hotit railway line is also expected to have a significant social and economic impact, as 1,000 people are expected to be employed during the construction phase of this railway. Meanwhile, during the operation phase, the number of employees is expected to be 100 people on this railway line alone,” she said.
Balluku also highlighted the impact that this transport line has on the environment. And this is one of the reasons, according to her, why the EU is also encouraging all countries to improve and rehabilitate these railway lines.
The cost of building this railway line, said Balluku, is estimated at 370 million euros, with 50% of this funding coming in the form of a grant. Balluku emphasized that this grant is one of the largest grants the country has received, based on EU policies to promote rail transport as much as possible. According to her, the funding has been provided by the Western Balkan Fund (WBF), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the EU.
