The official ceremony of the construction of the Kajaran tunnel was held today, which was attended by the Deputy President of the Republic of Iran Seyed Hamid Pourmohamadi, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Mher Grigoryan, the Minister of Economic and Technological Development of the Republic of Armenia Davit Khudatyan, representatives of the diplomatic corps, members of the National Assembly and other guests. It is announced by the RA TKEN.
The guests first took a tour of the two tunnels already dug on the 32 km Kajaran-Agarak road section, got acquainted with the massive work done.
After the tour, the solemn ceremony of signing the contract for the construction of the Kajaran tunnel took place.
The construction of the Kajaran tunnel is one of the stages of the North-South highway, which will enable the full operation of most of the southern part of the North-South priority.
With the construction of the Kajaran tunnel, the current route will be shortened by about 14 km, the average speed of vehicles will increase from 50 km/h to 80 km/h, and the travel time will be reduced by about 40 minutes.
The tunnel will bypass the Meghri Pass located at a height of 2535 m above the sea level, which will significantly increase the level of road safety, as well as create an opportunity to avoid difficulties related to ensuring the passability of the Meghri Pass in winter.
The Kajaran tunnel construction project will be implemented with 200 million USD loan funds allocated by the Eurasian Stabilization and Development Fund and around 195 million USD co-financing by the Republic of Armenia.
The construction works will start in 2026 and it is planned to be completed within 6 years.
Within the framework of the project, not only the Kajaran tunnel with a total length of 7.2 km, but also 4 km of approaching roads will be built.
The road to be built inside the tunnel will have two traffic lanes and sidewalks with a total width of 10.6 meters.
In order to provide emergency stops for vehicles, an additional 3-meter widening of the traffic zone of the tunnel is planned every 250 meters. In case of emergency, an exit will also be built under the tunnel for the purpose of evacuation.
A contract will be signed with the Iranian "Abat Rahan Pars International Group" and "Sad Ariana Tunnel" joint venture for the construction of Kajaran tunnel and approach roads.
The Kajaran tunnel construction project is financed by the Eurasian Stabilization and Development Fund and the Government of the Republic of Armenia
