According to the mayor of the capital, Kakha Kaladze, a Turkish-registered joint venture EYE (Emre Ray + Yüksel + Erk) will build a tram line from Didi Digomi to Didube metro station.

Kakha Kaladze made the relevant statement at a session of the Tbilisi Municipality Government. As he explained, four large companies participated in the tender, three of which are registered in Turkey and one in China.

According to Kaladze, the project should be completed within 36 months from the signing of the contract.

"You know that we had a pre-election promise, the implementation of a historic project, I mean the tram line. We announced a tender, where international and foreign companies had the opportunity to participate. I would like to provide you with information regarding this. As you know, for the design and construction of the tram line connecting Didi Digomi to the Didube metro station, the tender announced in accordance with the procurement rules of the Asian Development Bank was opened on March 31 of this year. Four large companies and joint ventures expressed their desire to participate in the tender and submitted relevant proposals, including three companies registered in Turkey and one in China. The evaluation of the submitted proposals has already been completed, we have a winning company, the company registered in Turkey is EYE (Emre Ray + Yüksel + Erk), which submitted the lowest price. In accordance with the ADB procurement, there is a so-called 14-day appeal period, after which we will sign an agreement with the winning company. I would like to remind the public that the project consists of 3 stages: preparation of a conceptual design, preparation of a detailed design and construction works. 36 months have been set for all three stages. After the agreement is signed, the project must be completed within 36 months. As for the tram line, it will start from the area adjacent to the merger of the 3rd and 4th microdistricts of Didi Digomi and will connect to the area adjacent to the Didube metro station through Davit Agmashenebeli Alley and Digomi Massif. The approximate length of the tram line is 7.5 km, where 11 stops will be located along the entire route. The project also includes the arrangement of an appropriate depot, which will be designed for the service and operation of 11 tram units. In parallel with the construction of the line, a separate tender will be announced for the purchase of 10 tram units.

It is a very important project and I am very glad that such an important public transport, such as the tram, will return to the city. I hope that this will not be the first and last project that the Georgian government, the capital city government, will implement. Many thanks to all the people who were involved in the preparation of the project, who worked hard, starting with the vice-mayor and ending with ordinary employees,” Kaladze said.