OREANDA-NEWS. On April 11, 2008 Sergei Abramov, Head of the Directorate of Railway Stations revealed that in late April 2008, Russian Railways would announce an open competition for a management company to operate Moscow's Kursk Station under a trust arrangement, reported the press-centre of Russian Railways.

A management company will be selected through a bidding procedure to operate the station under the following terms:

- bring the station buildings, facilities, engineering and technology networks up to the technically correct condition;

- ensure that the quality and range of services at the station meet the set requirements;

- ensure the safety of passengers in the station’s building;

- ensure a certain level of revenue for the owner.

Abramov said that the terms of the competition had not yet been settled and that the documentation was now being prepared. Deutsche Bahn AG is acting as a consultant on the package of bid documents.

During 2008 and 2009, it is planned to carry out more than 30 pilot projects to reconstruct and modernise Russia’s railway stations. Russian Railways will implement the projects using its own resources, but will also involve third-party companies which will manage the stations in trust.