Kyrgyzstan Seeks Investors for Crucial Railway to Makmal

Kyrgyzstan is actively seeking investors to accelerate the construction of a vital railway line connecting Balykchy, Kochkor, Kara-Keche, and Makmal. President Sadyr Japarov announced that the segment from Balykchy to Kochkor has been completed this year, marking a significant step toward realizing the full project. This railway aims to establish a seamless north-south rail connection for both passenger and freight transport, thereby reducing logistics costs across the country.

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We are working on this now, if we find investors, we will speed up. If we don't find them, we will build it slowly with our own efforts.

President Japarov estimates the total cost for the railway's completion to be around $1 billion. He expressed a preference for finishing the line to Makmal by 2032-2035, aligning with the expected completion of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway. However, he acknowledged that if the country relies solely on its own resources, the project could extend to 2035-2037. "We are working on this now, if we find investors, we will speed up. If we don't find them, we will build it slowly with our own efforts," Japarov stated.

The section from Kara-Keche to Makmal presents the most significant engineering challenges, requiring the construction of bridges and tunnels. Japarov highlighted that tunnels are particularly costly, while direct routes are cheaper. He cited the Balykchy-Kochkor line as an example, where 64 kilometers were built for $64 million, a stark contrast to initial tender offers of $5-6 million per kilometer.

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This road is needed not for China, not for Uzbekistan, not for Europe, but specifically for Kyrgyzstan, so as not to be a dead-end country.

Beyond domestic connectivity, the president emphasized the strategic importance of the railway as part of the "new Silk Road." He believes this project is crucial for Kyrgyzstan to avoid being a landlocked "dead end" country. Japarov projected that transit alone could generate $400-500 million annually, potentially rivaling the economic impact of the Kumtor gold mine. He also addressed skepticism surrounding the project, attributing opposition to external influences and bloggers paid to undermine national interests, asserting that the railway's primary benefit is for Kyrgyzstan itself.

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This road can become our second Kumtor; we can earn about 400-500 million dollars just on transit.