Due to the early and decisive action of the Government of Georgia in taking bold measures to limit international air traffic in February 2020 and subsequently to close borders, as well as the early intervention by the Employer, Roads Department of Georgia, working closely with the Contractor, Sinohyrdo Corporation and the Engineer, IRD Engineering S.r.l. to implement measures to avoid transmission of the Coronavirus on the project site, the Works were able to continue unhindered, with no delays, and both Lot 1 (Km 0+000 – Km 5+800) financed by the European Investment Bank, (95% completed) and Lot 2A, (km 5+800 to km 7+700) financed by the World Bank, (50% completed) are expected to be substantially completed, on time, in the summer of 2020.
Thereafter, the works contract for construction of the remaining section of Lot 2, (km 7+700 to km 14+050) will be awarded, which will be supervised by IRD Engineering S.r.l.
The Project aim is the construction of a new 4 lane motorway, (eventually 14 km total length), which will become part of the E-60 highway between Zemo Osiauri and Chumateleti under the East-West Highway Corridor Improvement Project (EWCIP). The E-60 highway connects the Black Sea coast to the capital city of Tbilisi passing through mountainous areas.
The project highway is concrete pavement and the Works include six bridges of which two bridges are approximately 500 m and 400 m in length, with a maximum pier height of 42 m. There were also 3 major landslides to deal with along the alignment, involving significant mitigation measures, including approximately 1,200,000 m3 of earthworks.