Federal State Institution “Nizhnyaya Volga” has announced a tender for the construction of a section of the Southern Bypass of Saratov with a bridge across the Volga.
The Federal Public Institution “Nizhnyaya Volga” (Lower Volga) has revealed a fresh bidding process for constructing a segment of the Southern Saratov Bypass, featuring a bridge spanning the Volga River. The proposed cost for this phase of the project amounts to 4.7 billion rubles. Proposals are being accepted until December 3rd, with the declaration of the winning bid planned for December 5th.
The assigned role for the chosen entity is to erect a part of the access route leading to the bridge on the Volga’s left shore, incorporating a complete cloverleaf junction, an elevated roadway, and an automatic weighing station. This competition is being organized in advance, and the selected company is anticipated to initiate on-site activities during the approaching road construction period, specifically on April 1, 2026. The road segment and interchange are scheduled to be finalized by May 31, 2027.
Besides the elevated roadway, the planning firm, Geo-Proekt LLC from St. Petersburg, also devised a bridge over the Mechetka River on the same road expanse; however, it isn’t within the defined technical parameters of this procurement. Most likely, this task is under the purview of Avtoban, the entity already engaged in developing the approaches to the Volga River bridge currently under development.
During the execution of its portion of the roadway, the newly selected entity will need to relocate various utility conduits. These encompass the surface-level water lines serving the Puteyets and Uyut gardening associations, the Rosseti Volga high-tension power transmission line, Rostelecom and Svyaztransneft communication cables, the Kuibyshev-Lisichansk natural gas conduit, and the RussNeft crude oil conduit, among others.
The bridge structure itself is being erected by the Grozny-headquartered holding, Bamtonnelstroy-Most (BTS-Most), under the ownership of entrepreneur Ruslan Baysarov. Concurrently, Saratov-based Avtoban is actively working on both banks of the Volga, developing the roadway that leads to the bridge. Subcontractors are participating, with individual agreements potentially exceeding one billion rubles.
The access route on the left bank to the bridge represents the most substantial investment; the agreement with Avtoban for its creation was valued at 16.4 billion rubles. The provider received 3.6 billion rubles and delivered 1.9 billion rubles worth of work. They also incurred one penalty due to quality concerns, amounting to 100,000 rubles.
The business is also conducting activities on the right bank for 9.2 billion rubles. It’s the location, adjacent to Khmelevka, where they effectively constructed a roadway atop human remains, awaiting any interest in the ancient burial site beyond the press. The provider has been compensated with 2.3 billion rubles; however, the specific scope of work performed hasn’t yet been detailed in the contract information on the public procurement website. A claim of 100,000 rubles associated with the quality of work has also been submitted in connection with this agreement.
The principal subcontractor involved in the work on the Volga’s right bank was T7 Group LLC, based in Moscow, holding a contract valued at 950 million rubles. According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, the firm was established in Moscow in October 2023, identifying Tigran Kirakosyan, a co-founder of Avtoban with a 40% stake, as its single founder. Avtoban’s main beneficiary is Ararat Kirakosyan, creator of a collection of roadway companies and the father of the aforementioned entrepreneur. It appears the subcontracting was almost an intra-family matter.
Conversely, other subcontractors have reason to be content, and their contract values are also fairly significant. Ozinki-based ZAO Oblkarerstroy was granted an agreement worth 127.7 million rubles. Saratov-based OOO Volgaavtostroy even surpassed T7 Group, securing a 1.3 billion ruble agreement. The individual behind this company, which has been in operation since 2021, is Maxim Kuznetsov, identified in public records as the son of Sergei Kuznetsov, formerly the head of the Saratov Road Management Committee and tied to the roadway firm OOO Optima. As a primary contractor, Volgaavtostroy has successfully completed only one agreement, specifically for the renovation of a rural road in the Turkovsky District, valued at 4.2 million rubles.
Regarding the tasks on the Volga’s left bank, T7 Group finalized a 1.5 billion ruble subcontract with Avtoban. The primary contractor entered into the most substantial subcontract with Volga-M LLC, a Saratov entity owned by Oleg Oreshkin and Arsen Alibekov. It will be accountable for 2.1 billion rubles worth of work. The company was newly established in 2024 and, at that time, had a limited workforce of only four individuals. Revenue in 2024 reached 142.2 million rubles. Volga-M has not participated in any government procurement processes.
BV Reference: Avtoban LLC was established in Saratov in 1992; prior to 2017, the company operated under the name Crocus Group. Its principal owner is Ararat Kirakosyan (60%), with Tigran Kirakosyan holding the remaining 40%. The company’s workforce in 2024 numbered 812 individuals, with revenue reported at 11.8 billion rubles and a net profit of 962.8 million.
