The cost of the first line of the Belgrade metro, stretching from Železnik to Mirijevo, is projected to range between 3.5 and 3.8 billion euros. However, the final price will be confirmed by the end of January, when contracts for Lot 3 and the second phase of the metro construction, including systems and trains, are finalized, according to Andrija Mladenović, director of JKP Belgrade Metro and Train.
As reported by eKapija, the price of this 21-kilometer-long line with 21 stations has doubled since 2020. Back then, Goran Vesić, then Deputy Mayor of Belgrade, had announced the Belgrade metro project at a cost of 4.4 billion euros, with the first line priced at 1.8 billion euros and the second line at 2.2 billion euros.
The price difference becomes even more apparent when looking at earlier projections from December 2018, when the Belgrade City Assembly established a company to build the subway. Vesić then stated that the total cost would be 3.6 billion euros, with the first phase alone costing 1.3 billion euros.
In May 2021, Vesić revised the cost to 4.6 billion euros for the first two lines, with the Serbian government taking on the financing of the project. Vesić explained that this sum, equivalent to four annual budgets of the City of Belgrade, would be unmanageable for the city alone.
By November 2021, due to rising construction material costs, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić warned that the price of the first two metro lines could exceed 5 billion euros. He noted that the increase in construction material costs was contributing to this upward adjustment.
Construction timeline: Digging to begin in 2026
According to the latest updates, the first line could be completed by 2030. The construction will begin with the 15-kilometer section from Železnik to the Pančevački bridge. Andreja Mladenović confirmed that excavation work is set to begin in 2026.
Phase 1 of the first line will include 14 stations: Železnik, Makiš, Žarkovo, Bele vode, Trgovačka, Požeška, Park Banovo brdo, Ada Ciganlija, Sajam, Gazela, Savski trg, Trg Republike, Skadarlija, and Danube.
Mladenović added that two Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs), also known as moles, will be ordered in February, with construction of the machines expected to take about a year. One TBM will dig from the future Bela Voda station to the Fair, and the other will work from the Pančevački Bridge to the Fair. Excavation work is expected to start by June 2026.
For the entire first line, three TBMs will be procured, with each machine costing around 20 billion euros, Mladenović noted.
New contracts and financing
Recently, representatives from the Serbian government, City of Belgrade, and Chinese company PowerChina signed a contract for the construction of the first phase of Line 1, valued at 720 million euros. This contract covers project development, execution of works, preparatory activities, and procurement of the TBM machines. The deadline for completing this phase is 45 months, with an additional 2 years for potential delays.
The new agreement also includes the creation of a special Lot 2, which will be financed from the Serbian budget and is set to begin immediately. This lot aims to accelerate the construction of the first phase of Line 1.
