Slowdown heat: No bidders for trans-harbour link

A crucial infrastructure project in the city has been hit by the global economic slowdown as no bidder has come forward to bid for the construction of the Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link.

Despite two extensions granted by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) to the bidders vying for a construction contract,none of the 14 leading consortia put in the bids because of the unstable economic situation. Earlier,the state government rejected the Build-Operate-Transfer model and opted for a cash contract. We tried the BOT model which did not give adequate results then. Unfortunately,there was no response for the cash contract model also. We will now have to sit together and explore possibilities of what alternate models could be adopted to implement the project, said Ratnakar Gaikwad,Metropolitan Commissioner of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority,which is funding the project.

According to sources,the reason why the companies did not bid for the cash contract of the sea bridge was that the interested consortiums demanded that 40 per cent of the transactions should be carried out in foreign exchange,a proposal that was not acceptable to the MSRDC.

Story continues below this ad

Some weeks back the MMRDA did not receive any response from seven consortia in the fray to win the contract to construct the Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd metro rail corridor. According to Gaikwad,the current market situation is such that it may take time for the authorities to come up with a suitable model to attract adequate response from interested parties. Wed examine alternate models,but the current market situation needs to change,perhaps itll take time for a new model to evolve as BOT and government-owned models have not worked out, Gaikwad added.

Despite this Gaikwad is positive that the Rs 7,500 crore-project will go through. This project is crucial for dispersal and more importantly the development of Raigad district. It will progress. Its just a matter of time before things brighten up, he added. Interestingly,while China has constructed four sea bridges in six years,the opening of the 5.6 km Bandra-Worli sea link is still to be decided upon. Officials say the iconic cable-stayed bridge is likely to be opened to traffic in May.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram