Astana Light Rail
Locations
Type
Rail
Status
Under Construction
Total Reported Cost
1.8 billion USD
Initiatives
Start Date
Aug. 31 2015
Start of Construction
May 27 2017
Planned Completion Date
2020
Contractors
Consultants
- —
Implementers
Operators
- —
Funders
| Source(s) | Amount |
|---|---|
| 1,800,000,000 USD |
Description
The Astana Light Rail falls under Kazakhstan's efforts to promote its "Nurly Zhol," or "path to the future" program, and link it to China's Belt and Road Initiative. China Development Bank's loan for the construction of the light rail was signed during Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev's visit to China in 2015. The rail will connect key locations in Astana - the international airport, the expo area, Nazarbayev University, Abu Dhabi Plaza and the House of Ministries - and will terminate at the new railway Astana Nurly Zhol railway station. It will have 18 stations and accommodate 150,000 people a day. In June 2019, Bloomberg reported that the China Development Bank halted lending in 2018 after the collapse of the bank where funds it had provided were deposited. Kazakh officials now say they will have to borrow domestically to complete the work.
Photo Credit: Astana LRT LLP
Photo Credit: Astana LRT LLP
Photo Credit: Astana LRT LLP