Accor and Hard Rock Link Hotel Distribution and Loyalty
Portugal Leads EU Rise in House Prices Relative to Income
Tbilisi Districts: Where Are Prices Highest and Sales Strongest?
Seoul Hotel Demand May Outpace Room Supply Until 2032
Sweden Property Investment Climbs 40% in Nine Months
Hotels Use AI for Pricing but Keep Humans in Charge
Six International Consortia to Compete for Tbilisi City Train Project: ADB Releases Shortlist
The railway network development project for Tbilisi and its suburbs has advanced to the next stage of the tender process. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has released a shortlist of six international companies and consortia competing to prepare the feasibility study for the City Train connecting the capital and adjacent areas.
The Tbilisi and suburban City Train development project moves to the next stage
Six companies will compete to win the tender for the feasibility study of the surface rail network connecting Tbilisi with Mtskheta, Lilo, and Rustavi — the ADB shortlist has been revealed.
Following the completion of the Expression of Interest (EOI) stage and the evaluation of submitted bids, the official shortlist of bidders was published in the international tender announced to prepare the project's feasibility study.
According to official data from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), invitations for consulting services were issued on 27 October, and shortlisted companies must submit their final tender proposals by 1 December 2026 (16:00 Manila time, Philippines).
Who is competing to prepare the study?
According to the final list published by ADB, six international groups and consortia passed the selection stage. Notably, Georgian companies are also featured in several of these partnerships.
Specifically, the shortlist includes:
1. Rina Consulting S.P.A. (Italy) - Georgian partner: LLC Gergili;
2. RITES Ltd. and ARG Project LLC (India) - Joint Venture (JV);
3. Aarvee Engineering Consultants Limited and CMC (India) - Joint Venture (JV);
4. BOTEK Bosphorus Technical Consulting Corp. (Turkey) and Balaji Railroad Systems (India) - Joint Venture (JV). Georgian partner: Georgian Engineering Business Groups;
5. MC Mobility Consultants and BERNARD Gruppe ZT GmbH (Austria) - Joint Venture (JV);
6. YUKSEL PROJE A.S. (Turkey);
Tender timelines and project details
According to information published on the ADB website, contract signing with the selected consulting companies and the launch of work are scheduled for 30 December 2026. The duration of services is set at 8 months.
According to the terms of reference, the main objectives of the project are:
Improving multimodal connectivity between the national railway network and urban public transport systems;
Enhancing passenger mobility and strengthening regional accessibility around Tbilisi;
Supporting sustainable urban and transport development in line with national and municipal policy frameworks;
Delivering a bankable feasibility study suitable for financing by international financial institutions.
The project provides for a detailed feasibility study that will determine the best alternatives for developing railway corridors across the Tbilisi metropolitan area (Rustavi, Mtskheta, east of Lilo, Marneuli, Ponichala).
"This primarily involves the use of existing infrastructure; however, where necessary, the construction of new railway sections and/or bypasses may be considered, for instance, along the section from the airport to Rustavi," the terms of reference state.
For reference, the international tender was announced by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The project is being implemented through an ADB loan, and the procurement budget is 393 thousand US dollars.
As a reminder, the deadline for submitting expressions of interest announced by ADB expired on 5 August 2026.
Notably, the procurement process was postponed several times. The initial application deadline was set for 11 June 2026 (30 days). Thereafter, the deadline was pushed first to 13 July, then to 20 July, later to 27 July, and finally to 3 August.