Georgia : East–West Highway (Shorapani–Argveta Section) Improvement Project
The Project involves construction of a new road section of the E-60 highway located in Imereti Region of central Georgia. Section F4 forms the Shoropani-Argveta portion of the Khevi-Ubisa-Shorapani-Argveta section of the E-60.
Project Details
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Project Officer
Naqvi, Zaigham Ali Akbar
Central and West Asia Department
Request for information -
Country/Economy
Georgia -
Sector
- Transport
| Project Name | East–West Highway (Shorapani–Argveta Section) Improvement Project | ||||
| Project Number | 53178-001 | ||||
| Country / Economy | Georgia |
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| Project Status | Active | ||||
| Project Type / Modality of Assistance | Loan |
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| Source of Funding / Amount |
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| Operational Priorities | OP1: Addressing remaining poverty and reducing inequalities OP2: Accelerating progress in gender equality OP3: Tackling climate change, building climate and disaster resilience, and enhancing environmental sustainability OP6: Strengthening governance and institutional capacity OP7: Fostering regional cooperation and integration |
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| Strategic Agendas | Environmentally sustainable growth Inclusive economic growth Regional integration |
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| Drivers of Change | Gender Equity and Mainstreaming Governance and capacity development |
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| Sector / Subsector | Transport / Road transport (non-urban) |
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| Gender Equity and Mainstreaming | Effective gender mainstreaming | ||||
| Description | The Project involves construction of a new road section of the E-60 highway located in Imereti Region of central Georgia. Section F4 forms the Shoropani-Argveta portion of the Khevi-Ubisa-Shorapani-Argveta section of the E-60. | ||||
| Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy | The loan aims to implement the Road Corridors Development Program to rehabilitate, improve or construct several roads in various regions of Georgia. The Government of Georgia is endeavoring to make Georgia a regional and logistics hub and more attractive for businesses. The East West Highway (EWH), stretching 410 km from Sarpi on the Black Sea, at the border with Turkey, through the center of the country to the capital Tbilisi and on to the border with Azerbaijan, is the main inter-regional and international route between western and eastern Georgia, as well as its neighboring countries. Representing about 2% of Georgia's road network and one fourth of its international roads, the EWH serves 8,000 to 10,000 vehicles per day and carries over 60% of the country's international trade. The EWH will be an integral part of one of the six key CAREC corridors providing the shortest transit link to connect Central Asia with Europe and East Asia. In light of the traffic growth on EWH, the high percentage of truck traffic, and the difficult terrain and resulting geometric profiles, capacity expansion of the current 2-lane mountainous section between Chumateleti and Argveta is crucial to realizing full potential of the EWH with improvements to the highway either completed or underway on each side of this section. Therefore, the Government has requested the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and several other development partners to finance the remaining bottleneck sections (Chumateleti-Argveta) on the EWH. A feasibility study financed under a World Bank project for the Chumateleti Argveta section (comprising four sections F1 through F4) of the EWH was completed in 2015. The detailed design of Section F1 has been completed and selection of the construction Contractor is on-going. Detailed design of sections F2, F3 and F4 is now on-going and this report forms the EIA for detailed design phase of section F4 which will be followed by sections F3 and F2. |
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| Impact | Economic growth and regional connectivity supported (Georgia Socio-Economic Development Strategy 2020) Infrastructure and economic connectivity cluster improved (CAREC 2030) |
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| Project Outcome | |
|---|---|
| Description of Outcome | Efficiency and safety of road transport along the East-West Highway (EWH) improved |
| Progress Toward Outcome | The Midterm Review (MTR) Mission was conducted in Sept-Oct 2022 to review the implementation progress, recalibrate the contract award and disbursement projections, and review and agree on procurement requirements of the project. |
| Implementation Progress | |
| Description of Project Outputs | Shorapani and Argveta section constructed Road safety increased Overload control implemented PBM contract implemented |
| Status of Implementation Progress (Outputs, Activities, and Issues) | As of 30 September 2022, cumulative works progress for the F4 section is about 12.8%. Works are ongoing on tunnels and bridges. The road safety awareness component and capacity building for operation and maintenance and project management component under F2 and F4 loans are harmonized for implementation. The road safety campaigns for both F2 and F4 will be conducted in 2023 during UN Road Safety week. Project management training program is planned to be delivered in 2023. The road maintenance sustainability strategy is in the initial stages of preparation. The contract for the procurement of 38 portable scales was awarded in November 2022. Procurement of weigh-in-motion equipment is expected to commence by Q2 2023. During the MTR, the government has requested to cancel the PBM component given the change in the government's priorities. |
| Geographical Location | Argveta, Shorapani |
| Safeguard Categories | |
|---|---|
| Environment | A |
| Involuntary Resettlement | A |
| Indigenous Peoples | C |
| Summary of Environmental and Social Aspects | |
|---|---|
| Environmental Aspects | The project has been classified as environment category A. The draft environmental impact assessment (EIA) was disclosed on 28 May 2019. This draft was submitted and reviewed by ADB and all key elements required for disclosure were present including the use of IFC standards for noise modelling in line with ADB's SPS 2009. The project will have significant adverse impacts that are irreversible and diverse. The alignment will be partially new and will require significant amounts of tunneling and bridge building activities with significant community impacts from resettlement and land conversion. Works will require construction in the Dzirula, Kvirila and Borimela rivers with 10 bridges, resulting in the loss of riparian habitat. Tunneling and cutting will require disposal of spoil during construction of 700,000 cubic meters. Impacts on noise, vibration, air quality, and surface water will occur during construction. |
| Involuntary Resettlement | The project is categorized as A for involuntary resettlement. As per the preliminary inventory, there are 455 APs with 2047 DPs affected by IR. Of these, 379 APs are severely affected, including 21 who are physically displaced. A land acquisition and resettlement plan (LARP) was prepared for JICA and is currently under implementation, approximately 90% completed. A due diligence is being performed on the LARP and a corrective action plan prepared to cover gaps between JICA and ADB policy. |
| Indigenous Peoples | The project is classified as category C for indigenous people. There are no indigenous peoples in the project area as defined in ADB's SPS (2009). |
| Stakeholder Communication, Participation, and Consultation | |
| During Project Design | Consultations were carried out with different stakeholders, including local communities in Zestafoni, in particular women, local authority representatives and civil society groups to inform them of the project as well as discuss its social and economic impacts. Civil society organizations were consulted to discuss community and gender-related issues. |
| During Project Implementation | Civil society organization does not have a specific role during project implementation. |
| Business Opportunities | |
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| Consulting Services | Consulting firms will be selected and engaged using the quality- and cost-based selection (QCBS) method and quality-based selection (QBS) method, where applicable. |
| Procurement | The procurement of goods, works, and the selection of consultant services will follow the new procurement framework as set out in ADB's Procurement Policy (2017, as amended from time to time) and the Procurement Regulations for ADB Borrowers (2017, as amended from time to time). Open competitive bidding (OCB) will be adopted for procurement and recruitment activities. |
| Responsible ADB Officer | Naqvi, Zaigham Ali Akbar |
| Responsible ADB Department | Central and West Asia Department |
| Responsible ADB Division | Transport and Communications Division, CWRD |
| Executing Agencies |
Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure of Georgia |
| Timetable | |
|---|---|
| Concept Clearance | 02 Jul 2019 |
| Fact Finding | 15 Jul 2019 to 26 Jul 2019 |
| MRM | 12 Sep 2019 |
| Approval | 22 Nov 2019 |
| Last Review Mission | - |
| Last PDS Update | 28 Dec 2022 |
Loan 3861-GEO
| Milestones | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approval | Signing Date | Effectivity Date | Closing | ||
| Original | Revised | Actual | |||
| 22 Nov 2019 | 27 Nov 2019 | 08 Jan 2020 | 31 Dec 2025 | - | - |
| Financing Plan | Loan Utilization | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (Amount in US$ million) | Date | ADB | Others | Net Percentage | |
| Project Cost | 367.40 | Cumulative Contract Awards | |||
| ADB | 278.00 | 26 Jan 2023 | 181.60 | 0.00 | 67% |
| Counterpart | 89.40 | Cumulative Disbursements | |||
| Cofinancing | 0.00 | 26 Jan 2023 | 91.09 | 0.00 | 34% |
| Status of Covenants | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Sector | Safeguards | Social | Financial | Economic | Others |
| Rating | Satisfactory | Satisfactory | Satisfactory | - | - | Satisfactory |
Project Data Sheets (PDS) contain summary information on the project or program. Because the PDS is a work in progress, some information may not be included in its initial version but will be added as it becomes available. Information about proposed projects is tentative and indicative.
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Safeguard Documents See also: Safeguards
Safeguard documents provided at the time of project/facility approval may also be found in the list of linked documents provided with the Report and Recommendation of the President.
Evaluation Documents See also: Independent Evaluation
None currently available.
Related Publications
None currently available.
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Requests for information may also be directed to the InfoUnit.
ADB to Help Construct, Improve Part of Georgia's East–West Highway
ADB has approved a $278 million loan (in euro equivalent) to construct and rehabilitate about 30 kilometers of main and secondary roads between the towns of Shorapani and Argveta on Georgia’s East–West Highway..
Tenders
| Tender Title | Type | Status | Posting Date | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3861-GEO: East-West Highway (Shorapani-Argveta Section) Improvement Project [SARP/GD/OCB-01] | Invitation for Bids | Closed | ||
| Project Implementation Specialist | Individual - Consulting | Closed | ||
| Road Asset Management Specialist | Individual - Consulting | Closed | ||
| RESETTLEMENT EXTERNAL MONITORING CONSULTANT | Individual - Consulting | Closed | ||
| 53178-GEO: East-West Highway (Shorapani-Argveta Section) Improvement Project [SARP/CW/OCB-01] | Invitation for Bids | Closed | ||
| Construction Supervision Consultant for E-60 Highway F4 Shorapani-Argveta Section | Firm - Consulting | Closed | ||
| 53178-GEO: East-West Highway (Shorapani–Argveta Section) Improvement Project | Advance Notice | Active |
Contracts Awarded
| Contract Title | Approval Number | Contract Date | Contractor | Address | Executing Agency | Total Contract Amount (US$) | Contract Amount Financed by ADB (US$) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CONSTRUCTION SUPERVISION CONSULTANT FOR THE E60 HIGHWAY F4 SHORAPANI-ARGVETA PROJECT | Loan 3861 | 19 May 2020 | JV UBM ULUSLARARASI AND SMEC INTL PTY LTD | KAZIM OZALP MAH. RESIT GALIP CADDESI NO: 94 G.O.P. CANKAYA/ANKARA TURKEY | Min. of Regional Dev't.& Infrastructure of Georgia | 7,276,541.58 | 6,253,573.29 |
| CONSTRUCTION OF SHORAPANI-ARGVETA SECTION (E60 HIGHWAY ROUTE) | Loan 3861 | 21 Jan 2020 | JV GUIZHOU HWAY ENG & CHINA NATL TECH IMP&EXP | NO 305, SOUTH SECTION OF BAIYUN AVENUE YUNYAN DISTRICT, GUIYANG CITY, GUIZHOU CHINA,PEOPLE'SREP.OF | Min. of Regional Dev't.& Infrastructure of Georgia | 201,943,619.30 | 165,766,450.30 |
Procurement Plan
| Title | Document Type | Document Date |
|---|---|---|
| East–West Highway (Shorapani–Argveta Section) Improvement Project: Procurement Plan | Procurement Plans | Feb 2022 |