The Communication Ministry had made the decision as the Bridges Division had not entertained the request of the Korean firms
A Chinese firm is set to get the contract for constructing the Padma bridge with the project cost having increased by Tk3,000 crore following three years’ delay and complexity in the tender process.
Bridges Division Secretary Khandokar Anwarul Islam yesterday sent the proposal to the Cabinet Division for appointing the China Major Bridge Engineering Co Ltd as the construction consultant.
The proposal will be placed today at a meeting of the cabinet committee on public purchase presided over by Finance Minister AMA Muhith, an official of the Cabinet Division said.
The proposal says the Communication Ministry did not entertain the request placed by the joint venture of two South Korean firms – the Samsung C&T Corporation and the DAELIM-Larsen and Toubro Limited – for extending the time of its financial offer by 10 and 12 weeks.
On May 11, 2010, the government floated the first tender for appointing the constructor of the Padma bridge in 2011. At that time, the project cost was Tk9,127.17 crore.
However, the tender process was suspended in August 2011 following allegations of corruption conspiracy raised by the World Bank.
The final tender was floated on June 26 last year and the China Major Bridge submitted its main financial offer on April 24 this year. The Bridges Division proposal says the Chinese company offered to build the Padma bridge at a cost of Tk12,133.39 crore – an increase of Tk3,006.22 crore from earlier.
Padma Bridge Project Director M Shafiqul Islam said the increase was normal because of the delay and re-tendering.
“But China Major Bridge has offered 12.62% [Tk1,752 crore] less cost than the estimated Tk13,885.85 crore as mentioned in the tender,” he said.
Economist AB Mirza Azizul Islam yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that the main tender of the Padma bridge would have been competitive and the construction cost of the Padma bridge would have been lower if the two South Korean firms had participated.
He said the Communication Ministry had made the decision as the Bridges Division had not entertained the request of the Korean firms.
Mentioning that the upgrading work of the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway to a four-lane one by a Chinese firm was yet to finish in around four years, the former adviser to a caretaker government said Chinese companies had a bad reputation in the field.
The Bridges Division proposal has not yet fixed the performance security for the constructor, saying it will be settled according to the pre-contract negotiation with the firm.
Ten firms participated in the tender of pre-qualification process and the evaluation committee selected five of them. The government cancelled the China Communication Construction Company’s tender as the World Bank had black-listed it.
According to the Bridges Division proposal, the government will pay 25.6% or Tk3,106 crore in local currency and the rest worth Tk9,027.24 crore in foreign currency, mainly US dollar.
The construction work of Jajira and Mawa connecting roads and service area 2 has already started under the project. A joint venture of Bangladesh and Malaysia named AML-HCM is carrying out the job with consultancy from the Bangladesh Army and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet). The army is looking after the security of the project.
The mega project of the 6.15km Padma bridge, which will connect 21 southern districts with the capital, is expected to complete by the end of 2017 or early 2018.
The World Bank, which pledged $1.2 billion loan for the project, halted its fund, raising corruption allegations in 2012.
Communication Minister Obaidul Quader on Monday disclosed that the China Major Bridge had got the construction work of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge.
Speaking at a discussion in the capital, he said it would take two more weeks to complete all the procedures and the Chinese company might be given the work order within the next three weeks if the cabinet committee approves the financial proposal.
“The work order for river training of the Padma will be given by next August. The construction of the main Padma bridge will be completed by the end of 2017 or the beginning of 2018,” the minister added.
China Major Bridge Engineering Co Ltd was established on November 01, 2004 under the sponsorship of China Zhongtie Major Bridge Engineering Group Co Ltd in association with Wuhan Iron and Steel (Group) Corporation, China Railway Tunnel Group Co Ltd, China Railway Shanhaiguan Bridge Group Co Ltd and China Academy of Railway Sciences after restructuring and merging the assets in bridge, road and railway construction and other civil work owned by China Zhongtie.
As per data up to June 2006, with a total asset of $851.48 million, six subsidiary companies, nine sub-companies and a lot of offices both at home and abroad, the China Major Bridge possesses 2,434 sets of construction equipment and plants and various cranes ranging from 5t to 3,000t with a value of $70.06 million and advanced computerised design, construction and management systems. With a fleet of 12,000 employees, including 5,800 engineers and technicians, the annual revenue earning of the China Major Bridge is $2 billion.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
