WORK to upgrade the 180km section of the Baku - Tbilisi - Kars (BTK) railway that lies within Georgia has been completed, increasing freight capacity from 1 million to 5 million tonnes a year on a key component of the Middle Corridor that is the shortest route by rail between China and Europe.
Completion of the project was marked by an official ceremony held in Akhalkalaki, Georgia, on June 2, attended by Georgia’s prime minister, Irakli Kobakhidze, and minister of economy and sustainable development, Mariam Kvrivishvili. Azerbaijan's minister of digital development and transport, Rashad Nabiyev, and Turkey’s minister of transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, were also present.
Opened in 2017, the 826km BTK railway connects Baku in Azerbaijan with Tbilisi in Georgia and Kars in Turkey. Transhipment facilities are provided at Akhalkalaki at the break between 1520mm and 1435mm gauge.
The upgrade in Georgia has included rehabilitating 153km of track and building a new 27km section. According to Nabiyev, 13 stations, 55 bridges, eight traction substations, and more than 320 structures have been built and commissioned.
Uraloğlu says completion of infrastructure work on the Georgian section marks a new phase that will enable the line to operate more efficiently and effectively, further strengthening its role within the Middle Corridor.
“The world is looking not at the capacity of the BTK railway, but at its performance,” Uraloğlu says. "Our success will be measured not by the kilometres we build, but by the quality of service we provide, transit times and the confidence of users.”
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