Construction of Awash- Hara Gebeya railway line launched Featured

Addis Ababa February 25/2015 Construction of the Awash- Weldia- Hara Gebeya railway project, which is part of the railway system that will connect northern and north eastern part of the country with port of Tadjoura, officially launched today.

Construction of the 370km long railway line is expected to be finalized within three and half years.

The project, in which its construction is being carried out by a Turkish company, Yapi Merkezi, will consume 1.7 billion USD.

Yapi Merkezi has completed the Dubai Metro Project, Casablanca tramline and Ankara - Konya high speed rail line that make the company a world brand in rail systems.

The contract agreement for the construction of the railway line was signed two years ago and the plan was to finalize the project in December 2015.

But construction of the project forced to be delayed because of problems related to securing funds from development partners.

Now the nation has managed to secure the money needed to finance the project, most of it from Exim Bank of Turkey and the remaining from other EU countries.

The partnership between the EU countries to extend the support to this project is a result of the nation's policy that prioritizes economic diplomacy, said Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn during the occasion.

The railway, which will operate using renewable energy, is a manifestation of Ethiopia's target to build environmental friendly projects that use renewable energy and minimizes expenditure on oil, he added.

The Mekele- Woldia- Hara Gebeya- Semera- Tadjourah Port railway project is one of the eight railway routs identified by the government as important to boost the transportation network within the country and with neighboring countries and ports.

A few days ago a cornerstone was laid for the construction of a 220km railway line between Mekele- Hara Gebeya- Weldia, which is part of this railway system. Construction of this project will be completed within three and half years and is expected to consume 1.5 billion USD.

Construction of these and other railway infrastructures that will boost domestic transportation system and enables the nation reach ports makes Ethiopia the leading African country in railway developments, HaileMariam said.