Novosibirsk Fourth Bridge Opens Amid Threat of Closure Over Funding Dispute

The Novosibirsk Fourth Bridge, which opened to traffic on December 15, 2025, faces a precarious operational future. The VIS Group, the entity responsible for the project, has warned that the crossing could be closed because the ongoing costs of maintenance have become financially unsustainable without a confirmed mechanism for reimbursement. The conflict centers on a breakdown in financial settlements between the concessionaire and the regional Ministry of Transport. A critical liquidity gap emerged when 3.3 billion rubles, held in Ministry accounts during 2023, were not released to VIS until late 2025. This delay disrupted the construction schedule and shifted the project's financial equilibrium. The current bottleneck is the Volume and Cost of Works (VOiSR) statements. VIS claims to have completed work valued at 8.3 billion rubles, but these costs required reallocation due to errors in the original 2015 design documentation. According to the company, the regional transport minister has refused to sign the updated statements since the spring, effectively blocking the financial closure of completed construction phases.