Tender launched for operator for seaplane service between Sabarmati riverfront and Statue of Unity

The service started between Ahmedabad and Ekta Nagar on October 31, 2020. However, it was suspended when operator SpiceJet pulled out in April 2021. Till April 10, 2021, the service remained suspended for 47 days due to maintenance. In March 2021, then transport minister Purnesh Modi had told the state Assembly that Rs 7.77 crore had been spent on the service.

As per the conditions of the tender, the preferred bidder “shall be required to mobilise resources and commence services within 30 days from the date of signing of agreement”.

The GUJSAIL is seeking the deployment of a seaplane or an amphibious aircraft on the route. The tender document stated, “The operator is expected to deploy 9 to 19-seater single engine aircraft or that of a higher configuration, seaplane or amphibian… the aircraft should be maximum 12 years old as of the date of issuance of the RFP and meet all the DGCA requirements and during the entire period of the services.”

The tender also specified that the “operations have to be preferable during the morning and evening” and the “last flight will be dependent on sunset time”.

The operator is required to operate two round trips (four flights) a day for a minimum of six days per week with one day reserved for operation and maintenance. “The maintenance days can be clubbed for five to six days in a month instead of one day in a week… the operator must undertake a minimum of 25 days of operation considering the maintenance and other factors.”

The tender also addresses the viability gap funding (VGF) model for the operator as an incentive. “The minimum trips to be covered by the operator in a month shall be 80 to avail the ‘monthly’ VGF. No VGF will be paid if the total trips in a month are lesser than 80… the VGF shall be applicable for a maximum of 100 trips per month for the identified sector only. VGF should be given for the flight only if there is at least one fare-paying passenger on any round trip…,” it stated.

The new RFP comes a year after GUJSAIL awarded the contract to operate the service to Maritime Energy Heli Air Services Private Limited (MEHAIR), which was to procure a nine-seater amphibious Cessna aircraft and resume services last August. However, the contract fizzled out and the service remained suspended.

According to the tender details, the agreement is to be for three years, and to “build confidence” among the bidders, GUJSAIL has proposed to deposit an amount equivalent to three years of the monthly cost of “aircraft leasing” in an escrow account, in which the preferred bidder will be made a joint signatory.

The tender specifies that the escrow will “ensure payment of the monthly ‘aircraft leasing cost’ as quoted by the preferred bidder and approved by the authority, in case the authority decides to stop the services before three years…”.

Hareet Shukla, Secretary (Aviation), said, “The seaplane service is an emerging concept. There is no seaplane operator in India as of now but we are open to receiving bids from anyone who is eligible and not necessarily is a big player… We also plan to meet the bidders to understand what the company and their expectations.” Shukla added that no deadline has been set. “We cannot put down a deadline as there are many processes involved in resuming the service. The actual resumption is the last step…”.

The authority has laid down a 100-mark evaluation criteria for choosing the bidder, which includes the net worth of the bidder or consortium, the age of the aircraft proposed to be deployed, as well as a technical presentation of previous experience of providing similar services, among others.