Iraq has announced that the designs of its $2.5 billion Baghdad Metro project have been fully completed, reported the Iraqi News Agency (INA), citing a top official.

 

Spanning over 148km, the project will boast 64 stations covering 85% of the city including all holy sites, colleges and tourism districts, stated Nasser Al Asadi, the Iraqi Prime Minister’s advisor on transport affairs.

 

It is being developed under DBOMFT (design, build, operate, maintain, finance and transfer) ownership model, her added.

 

Last month, Iraq began inviting bids for the project for which a total of 26 multinational corporations from China, India, Germany, Italy, Spain and Qatar have expressed their interests in the project.

 

At a key meeting held last month with Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al Sudani, the representatives of China Railway demonstrated the company’s capacity to take part in executing the project, reported INA.

 

The Chinese company is implementing the Nisour Square development project in central Baghdad as part of the government’s projects to relieve traffic congestion in the Iraqi capital, it added.