The award of EPC contracts is slowly picking up in the road sector with NHAI starting to award contracts since January 2014. In early January, NHAI resumed EPC mode of awarding contract. The companies who have won the NHAI bids include Ashoka Buildcon Ltd and KNR Constructions Ltd.
Ashoka Buildcon has emerged as the lowest bidder for upgradation of two highway stretches worth Rs.292 crore in Maharashtra, put to tender by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The scope of this NHDP Phase-IV project starting from end of Malshej Ghat to start of Ane Ghat section and end of Ane-Ghat to start of Ahmednagar bypass section would involve rehabilitation and upgradation of the highway to two lanes with paved shoulders. The EPC tender was submitted by the company to Maharashtra PWD engaged by MoRTH.
KNR Constructions Ltd received an EPC order towards rehabilitation and upgradation of a road in Andhra Pradesh, also under NHDP Phase-IV. The Rs.209-crore order involves two laning of Penchalakona-Yerpedu section (from km 425/400 to km 509/400) of NH-565 with paved shoulder.
As a sign of progress, the 10th road project of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd—Trichy-Karur road in Tamil Nadu—undertaken through its SPV, TK Toll Road Pvt. Ltd, has been completed recently. The Rs.732-crore BOT (Toll) project involved four laning of 63 km of Trichy-Karur road on NH-67 connecting Coimbatore with Trichy, Kumbakonam, Tanjavur and Nagapatinnam.
About six NHAI projects worth Rs.5,200 crore have been completed during the January-March 2014 quarter and about 24 projects are expected to be completed in a month. On completion, NHAI would add the capacity of road projects to a total of 2,530 km in fiscal 2013-14 with an investment of Rs.12,000 crore.
