The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will release a tender to study the potential advantages and benefits from the implementation of two Caspian canal projects. The first project, the Volga-Don 2 project, seeks to improve the Volga-Don canal by constructing a second channel for strengthening the canal’s connection to the Caspian Sea. The Eurasia Canal project, on the other hand, is geared at creating a new and more direct route over the Caucasus. “There are two possible options. The first is to continue to develop the second thread of the Volga-Don Canal and to build it with the help of a consortium of a number of countries. The second option, which is quite sound as well, is the Eurasia Canal,” said Russian first deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. “These two variants should be scrutinized and decisions should be made on them by the year?s end.” (Source: EBRD looking into Caspian canal projects/The Messenger)
