Cost of cross-border cableway project between Russia, China rises to 13 bln rubles

BLAGOVESHCHENSK. May 22 (Interfax) - The world's first cross-border cableway, which will connect Russia and China and stretch across the banks of the Amur river, will cost more than 13 billion rubles according to the latest data, Ekaterina Kuzmina, chief operating officer of the Agency for the Development of Project Initiatives (ARPI, part of Region Group), told journalists.

"Right now, the total project budget is 13.2 billion rubles. This includes the terminal, the cableway itself - everything together, fully turnkey, so that everything functions," Kuzmina said.

The project is unique and has no analogs in the world, since cableways are typically constructed within a single country, ARPI said. The route between Blagoveshchensk and Heihe, at a height of 70 meters above the river, will span 976.28 meters. The ride duration will be 2.5 minutes. The cableway will consist of two independent lines with two cabins, and its capacity will be 6,800 passengers per day in each direction, or 2.5 million people per year in both directions.

In April, key equipment - 9 tonne sheaves - was installed on the site. Specialists noted the precision of this work, as the Russian passenger boarding and disembarkation station is located inside a complex, unlike the Chinese project where the terminal and boarding platform are separate structures. The sheaves had to be inserted through a small opening in the roof while preserving the integrity of the supporting structures.

"We chose a different construction technology because we're focused on comfort. Our partner used another approach. On the Chinese side, the mechanism and passenger station are separate from the main building. In our case, everything is inside - it will be comfortable. You arrive directly inside, into the terminal," Kuzmina said.

Construction teams on both sides of the border are working in sync, and the Chinese equipment supplier is delivering components simultaneously to both sites. The passenger terminal building on the Russian side is 60% complete. Taking into account the large number of sunny days in the Amur region, the project includes extensive glazing to maximize natural light. Glazing is 20% complete and is expected to be finished by autumn 2025.

"We plan to complete construction [of the cableway] this year, but we will open it to the public in spring 2026. The facility is classified as third-level complexity. It's a challenging project. Accordingly, we will first conduct test rides," Kuzmina said.

As reported, the cableway is being built under an intergovernmental agreement between Russia and China signed in September 2015. A symbolic start to the project was given in July 2019. Initially, organizations from Russia, China, France and the Netherlands were involved.

The project is being implemented by the Agency for the Development of Project Initiatives. The previous budget estimate was 12 billion rubles. The project documentation was revised during the course of work, and the technical aspects of the work were altered, the investor said.

Initially, the project was scheduled for completion in H2 2022, with commissioning in 2023. Later, the Russian investor announced a timeline revision due to the need for negotiations with foreign partners.