The Government is expected to sign a contract with the US – Turkish consortium Bechtel – Enka for the construction of 110 kilometers of highways on the east – west corridor, which is going to cost the country over 1.3 billion EUR.

The negotiations were led by scandal stricken First Deputy Prime Minister Artan Grubi, who yesterday presented the details. Grubi said that the deal includes completely rebuilding the narrow Tetovo – Gostivar highway, building a new highway from Gostivar to Kicevo, across difficult terrain, building a short section from Struga to the border with Albania and a highway between Bitola and Prilep.

The average cost is at 12 million EUR per kilometer, which is about the average of what we pay now. We plan to build 22-25 kilometers per year at very high quality and finish the project in six years, Grubi said.

Grubi said that the funds will be provided wholly from the budget – and will not include the usual EU grants that most other countries in the region are using to develop their infrastructure.