Minister of Finance in technical mandate Sinish Mali he visited the construction site of the metro station "Bele vode" on Makisko polje, where the first underground station will be located Belgrade metro.
This construction site is still waiting for the arrival of the Chinese TBM machines for digging tunnels, so called "moles".
Where are the "moles"?
Mali stated that the "mole" is at the border and that he is waiting for the water level of the Danube to be adequate so that it can be transported to the Port of Pancevo. And if everything goes according to plan, it will be installed in November and start digging at the end of the summer of 2027.
Photo: Power ChinaThe moles, which will dig the Belgrade subway, are waiting at the border
"In order for the works to be as efficient as possible, two machines will start from opposite ends of the city," said Mali. The digging of the line to the Belgrade Fair will begin from Makiški polje. Another one from the station near Pančevačko bridge on Karaburma will meet that "mole".
He said that the TBM machines dig about ten meters of tunnel per day, and they will work 24 hours a day.
"The wait will pay off"
Mali pointed out that construction permits are being obtained for other metro stations on the First Line.
We remind you that three metro lines, 70 kilometers of network and 72 stations are planned.
Work on the Second Line is expected to begin in 2028.
Mali visited the construction site together with the director of JKP Belgrade Metro and Train, Andrej Mladenović.
photo: tanjug / filip krainčanićMETRO IN THE BUS: Siniša Mali, February 2018.
Mladenović stated that the Belgrade Metro is a complex project that requires a lot of time and effort, but that "the wait will pay off."
Mishaps with deadlines
Siniša Mali, together with the city manager of Belgrade Miroslav Čučković, during this year had a series of missed statements about the deadlines for the Belgrade Metro.
Back in April, Mali claimed that the "moles" were leaving for Serbia in June, although the competent company only announced in August that they had left China. Čučković said in August of this year that they would arrive in Serbia in October.
October is here, moles still not.
In April of this year, Čučković also stated that construction permits for these works are arriving at any time. Only at the beginning of September 2026, the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure issued to the company Belgrade Metro and Train a decision on the construction permit for the works necessary to prepare the ground for the launch of the TBM machine.
Chronicle of the Belgrade Metro
The metro plan from 2012, like today's, includes three lines. The only difference is the price - the older one was cheaper. Back then, we had a "lite version of the metro", most of the route was planned above ground and was supposed to be completed in four years.
Photo: Nikola Andjic / TanjugPlans, promises, deadlines and the company that manages the subway
Now it is predicted that the routes in New Belgrade will be underground, which means digging through sand. The expert public warned that the same terms of four years are no longer realistic, and that this will drastically increase the cost of construction.
The "light version" included two routes that cover the most frequented parts of the city. The third route would use 90 percent of the previous two routes to save money. That is no longer the case either - three completely independent lines are planned.
The procurement of trains has also caused controversy. In February, the weekly "Radar" reported that the company Alstom from France was entrusted with the work for 32 metro compositions, while the German Siemens, which operates in Kragujevac, was bypassed. One vehicle will cost 31 million euros.
For the sake of comparison, the London Underground acquired 94 Siemens compositions seven years ago at a price of around 18 million euros per piece.
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