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A giant rail network linking the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council states is set to start operations in 2017 at a $25 billion cost, an official said.
The KUNA news agency quoted GCC Assistant Secretary General Mohammed Obaid Al Mazroui as saying preliminary studies of the project, expected to cover some 2,000 km, have been completed and approved by GCC leaders.
He said the GCC secretariat, in co-operation with Gulf and international consultants, is now preparing detailed execution studies of the project. "If actual implementation of the project starts this year, then the Gulf train will be ready in 2017," Mazroui said.
Initial estimates put the cost at $14 billion but the expense rose to $25 billion after GCC leaders demanded better specifications and faster trains, he said. The cost will be divided among GCC member states based on the length of the network in each country with Saudi Arabia and the UAE to pay the biggest shares.
