Iraq plans to kick off its long-delayed multi-billion-dollar Baghdad Metro project by the end of 2025, according to Mohammed Al-Najjar, advisor to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.
The project, described as strategic and large-scale, will be implemented in phases and is expected to take several years to complete. It will span 150 kilometers and include 64 metro stations across the capital.
“We hope that phase one of the project will begin before the end of this year. It will be carried out in multiple stages and will require years to complete,” Al-Najjar told Al-Eqtisad News.
The metro will feature a combination of elevated tracks, underground tunnels, and surface-level routes, marking the country’s first-ever metro system. The plan includes seven lines serving key areas across Baghdad.
The government awarded the project in July 2023 to a European-Turkish consortium composed of France’s Systra, SNCF, and Alstom, Spain’s Talgo and SENER, and several Turkish contractors, with financial support from Germany’s Deutsche Bank.
The Baghdad Metro forms part of a broader urban masterplan for the capital, which also includes the development of an expanded transport network, a new ring road, and infrastructure projects aimed at reducing traffic congestion.
Source: agbi.com
