Deadline for financial bids for Hyderabad Metro extended again

HYDERABAD - The Andhra Pradesh government Saturday extended for the second time the last date for submitting financial bids for the Rs.12,132 crore Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) project to June 14.

This is the third time in as many months that HMR project authorities have extended the deadline as the shortlisted bidders did not come forward to submit financial bids.

The state government had earlier set April 9 as the deadline, extended it to April 21 and then till June 7.

Earlier this year, eight consortia had qualified to file the financial bids.

These were consortia led by Reliance Infrastructure, Lanco Infratech, GVK, GMR, L&T, Soma-Straburg, Transstroy and Essar groups.

GVK and GMR pulled out even before submitting the bids amid reports that the bidders were apprehensive of the financial viability of the project in the changed scenario.

The authorities called for fresh global bids in July last year after scrapping the deal with Maytas Infra, a sister-concern of scam-hit Satyam Computer Services, as it failed to achieve financial closure.

The elevated Metro Rail project will be taken up in public-private-partnership on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis.

The ground work on the project for three routes of 71.16 km is expected to start by October and the entire project is expected to be completed in four years.

Maytas-led consortium had bagged the project in 2008.

The government also forfeited Rs.71 crore deposited by the consortium as performance guarantee and as advance towards Rs.30,311 crore it promised to pay to the government over the concession period of 35 years.