OJSC RR has begun the construction of the main passage of new Kuznetsovsky tunnel. According to the RR press service report, on December 16, 2009, after completion of the transport culvert a team of workers has started cutting-through of a main tunnel.
Drilling of the transport culvert has been carried out since November last year by Robbins mining working complex with a diameter of 4.3 m. This cut tunnel with total length of 3911 meters is designed for diverting water from the mountain range and maintaining of the future main tunnel. In the process of tunneling and clarify the geological characteristics of rocks.
Russian Railways has been accomplishing an investment project, according to earlier reports, for reconstruction of Komsomolsk-on-Amur - Sovetskaya Gavan (Far Eastern Railway) line, with funding in 2009 amounting to 2.8 billion rubles, the company’s press service said. Total project cost amounts to 23 billion 758.8 million rubles (including VAT), including 17 billion 556.4 million rubles of means of Russian Investment Fund and 6.2 billion rubles invested by Russian Railways.
The transport infrastructure of the North passage is urgent for the development of Vaninsky-Sovietskaya Gavan (Soviet Harbour) transport and industrial hub and for special economic zone on the basis of the sea port of Sovetskaya Gavan. The hub is a gate for delivering of cargoes to the ports of Busan and Sovetskaya Gavan, on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.
From 2007 to 2009 at least 11.7 billion rubles have been invested in the development of the eastern Baikal-Amur mainline (BAM) of the Far East Railways. As a result of the total reconstruction ten new siding lines have been put into service, the RR press service said.
The 37.6km line Ouneh - Vysokogornaya with Kuznetsovsky tunnel was built in 1945. So far the tunnel has been in poor condition. After reconstruction the length of the line would be 24.9 km.