A CHINA Railway Construction Corp. (CRCC) unit has signed a memorandum of understanding to build rail and port projects in Russia, the Shanghai-listed firm said in a stock exchange statement yesterday.

    The agreement was one of a series signed between China and Russia on the sidelines of a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Moscow to mark the anniversary of the end of World War Two in Europe.

    China Civil Engineering Construction Corp. (CCECC) said it had agreed with Russian firm Tuva Energy Industrial Corp. (TEIC) to consult on and help source funds from Chinese institutions for projects including a 410-kilometer track across the central southern part of Russia from Elegest to Kuragin.

    The other projects comprise a railway line connecting the Tuvan Republic, in the same area of Russia, to western China, and a port project in eastern Russia.

    CCECC said the firms would sign a contract for general contracting once the projects obtained financing. It did not say what the deals were worth.

    Last week, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said the countries would invest 1 trillion roubles (US$17 billion) in a rail link between Moscow and the Russian city of Kazan to be completed by 2020. Putin said the level of Chinese investment would be around 300 billion roubles. (SD-Agencies)