MOSCOW, June 29. /TASS/. The construction of a tunnel under the Bering Strait between Chukotka and Alaska may become one of the most expensive infrastructure projects in world history, since the region is distanced from major economic centers and due to the Far North's challenging conditions, Director of the Center for Arctic and Northern Urban Studies at the National Research University Higher School of Economics Nadezhda Zamyatina told TASS.

Earlier, Russia's Special Presidential Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries and CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev spoke about an agreement with an engineering company to design a tunnel between Russia and the United States. He hoped the design of the "Putin-Trump Tunnel" under the Bering Strait may be completed by the end of 2026 and said that even China could join this project.

"Building a tunnel in remote areas far from major economic centers and in the harsh conditions of the North, apparently, will be one of the most expensive projects in history," Nadezhda Zamyatina said, adding the tunnel across the Bering Strait is technically feasible and is only about 1.5 times longer than the Channel Tunnel. However, the main challenges lie in materials delivery and in creation of supporting infrastructures in Chukotka.

Food and fuel are brought to the region under the Northern Supplies program, the expert continued, and transportation of big volumes of metal structures and concrete for the construction would require complex logistical solutions. She also stressed it would be necessary to build transport approaches to the tunnel in Chukotka's territory. "Both its construction, and its operation will be times more expensive than those in developed areas. Even more expensive than BAM (the Baikal-Amur Mainline - TASS)," she said.

An available cargo base to ensure the project's payback remains the key issue when discussing the tunnel construction through the Bering Strait, she continued. "It is not clear even roughly what could be transported between Chukotka and Alaska in amounts to have the project pay off at least in some future," she said.

The gold mined in Chukotka is transported by air, and the Baim ore zone development does not involve raw materials' supplies to the United States, she said. The expert doubted a significant transit flow of goods through Chukotka in the current geopolitical environment. The railway infrastructure in the North could be reasonable only in case of transporting big amounts of raw materials. As for the tunnel between Chukotka and Alaska, as yet such amounts do not seem realistic, she said.