The Ukrainian Railways joint-stock company (Ukrzaliznytsia) has announced the beginning of two large-scale infrastructure projects involving electrification of the Dolynska-Mykolaiv-Kolosivka and Kovel-Izov-state border railway stretches, the CFTS portal reports.
According to the announcement, the company intends to finance the implementation of the latter project with its own funds and complete it this year.
“We are currently preparing for large-scale work and we must make up for lost time. Therefore, we are urgently starting work on electrification of the Kovel-Izov-state border railway stretch,” Ukrzaliznytsia’s acting Director Ivan Yuryk said.
He added that the electrification of this railway stretch, which has a length of 94 kilometers, would allow the company to reach a new level in the transportation of export freight.
"In particular, we will be able to increase the weight of freight trains from 4,600 tons to 6,000 tons and achieve an annual economic impact of almost UAH 105 million by reducing the cost of transportation. We will also reduce the amount of emissions into the environment by 12,000 tons," Yuryk said.
According to the announcement, a tender committee will select a contractor for the electrification of the Dolynska-Mykolaiv railway stretch, and the electrification work is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2021.
"The electrification of the Dolynska-Mykolaiv railway stretch, which is part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) in Ukraine, will allow Ukrzaliznytsia to increase its opportunities for transportation of export cargo, which include grain, ore cargo, fuel, and others, to the ports of Mykolaiv. For us, transportation of freight on electrified routes means reduced costs and increased throughput. For Ukraine, it means improvement of the environment and reduction of the burden on highways and their preservation," he said.
