Russia's Lena Bridge project struggles with delays and costs

Lena Bridge Critically Behind Schedule and Over Budget

Lena Bridge in Yakutia faces delays, cost hikes despite Putin's 2028 deadline

YAKUTIA.INFO – Questions have once again arisen about the timeline for completing the Lena Bridge in Yakutia. This time, the doubts stem from official reports by the developer itself and statements from the republic's top officials—reports that Yakutia.Info is sharing with its readers.

After just over a year of construction, the VIS Group has reported driving 125 bored piles and completing a single support pier for the bridge. Access roads have been graded, and one and a half kilometers of safety barriers have been installed. Media outlets regularly cover these developments, painting a picture of bustling activity, according to the reports.

The most significant milestone, of course, has been the resumption of construction on the bridge across the Lena—a project that will transform life across the entire republic. Work is proceeding on schedule: a road is being prepared on the right bank, while on the left bank, we have assembled the first structure for the future piers. This technology is being used in Russia for the first time, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Sadovnikov declared in a recent post on his Telegram channel, trotting out well-worn talking points.

This year, construction is supposed to ramp up dramatically if the ambitious 2026 targets are to be met. Yakutia's Ministry of Transport recently outlined them:

Installing the foundations for the bridge piers directly in the riverbed using floating pile drivers (though the VIS Group has clarified that only one cofferdam will be launched this year).
Erecting three viaduct piers to ensure the structural integrity of the future bridge.
Driving bored piles for 13 piers on the right bank.
Continuing work on grading the earthen embankment for the right-bank vehicle approach.
Assembling a ponton bridge to ensure uninterrupted movement of heavy machinery on the right bank.
Building three dormitories to house workers involved in the bridge's construction.

Here's the comparison: 125 piles and one pier—that's the output after the first year. Yet in 2026 alone, at least 234 piles and 13 piers must be installed, not to mention launching the cofferdam—which adds another 102 piles. See the difference? And this doesn't even account for the grading, the ponton bridge, or the dormitories. Builders will need to pick up the pace significantly to meet these targets.

On top of that, launching the cofferdam into the water will have to be done during the narrow window of "deep water" season—a volatile period that fluctuates between April and July. If they miss it, they'll have to shell out for dredging, which could cost an extra 500 million rubles (at 2025 prices). Last year, they already postponed the launch to this year precisely to avoid those expenses.

Back in April 2025, Mikhail Samarichev, chief engineer of VIS Stroy LLC, announced plans to launch and transport the cofferdams to their designated positions that same summer.

The operation will also require significant resources from Rosmorrechflot, Russia's inland waterways agency. For context, a cofferdam is essentially a colossal, three-thousand-ton steel barrel. Positioning such a behemoth with precision in the river is no small feat—this is uncharted territory for engineers.

A project of this scale demands serious funding. Yakutia's Transport Minister Vladimir Sivtsev has earmarked a staggering 48 billion rubles for 2026 alone—compared to just 19.1 billion invested over the previous two years. Of that sum, 3.7 billion is expected from the federal budget, while the republic itself must cover 7.4 billion. But with Yakutia already grappling with a budget crisis, where will that money come from? Another infrastructure loan, perhaps?

The real mystery, however, is where the VIS Group—the project's lead contractor—will find the remaining 37 billion rubles, as mandated by Sivtsev's plan. In the first half of 2025, the company reported a net profit of just 1 billion rubles, issued bonds worth 2.5 billion, and is seeking a 5 billion ruble loan from Sberbank. The numbers still don't add up—though financial outlets note that VIS is currently managing 29 major projects with timelines extending to 2048, boasting a contract portfolio valued at 805 billion rubles. Maybe, just maybe, they'll scrape together the funds from somewhere.

Here's the bottom line: If the cofferdam isn't launched this summer—at the very latest, by autumn—it will mean VIS failed to secure the necessary financing. And we'll see a repeat of the Novosibirsk Bridge debacle, whose construction was delayed by two years due to underfunding. But that bridge was neither as massive nor as complex as Yakutia's "first-of-its-kind" project at the Vilyuisk Machine-Building Plant.

A reminder: President Vladimir Putin has set a 2028 deadline for the Lena Bridge, while the project's original timeline targets mid-2029. The clock is ticking.