Indian firm wins contract to build Ogle-Eccles Road with bid higher than engineer’s estimate

Feb 02, 2022 News

Kaieteur News – An Indian firm which had formerly submitted the highest bid to construct the Ogle to Eccles by-pass Road has secured the contract. And although the contractors had agreed to reduce the bid, the final price tag is still higher than the engineer’s estimate
Kaieteur News understands that the company, Ashoka Buildcon Limited had initially submitted a bid to the tune of US$ 111,976,190. It must be noted that Guyana’s local estimate for the project was US$48,676,922. After the bids were opened at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) in December last year, an agreement was made between the Government of Guyana and the Indian firm. This process ended in the Indian company offering a five percent discount on its bid, which then reduced their offer to US$ 106,383,954.
On December 10, last, three prequalified Indian firms, AFCONS Infrastructure Limited, Ashoka Buildcon Limited, and Dineshchandra R. Agrawal Infracon Private Limited (DRAIPL) had submitted financial proposals for the project to the NPTAB office.
During the opening of tenders on that day, AFCONS Infrastructure Limited bid US$108,055,358, DRAIPL bid US$106,775,275, while, Ashoka Buildcon Ltd. had offered a 5% discount on its US$ 111,976,190 bid.
Ashoka Buildcon Limited, according to its website, is one of the leading highway developers in India. Besides construction of highways and bridges the company is also engaged in construction of buildings, railways and city gas distribution, among others. The company is one of the first Indian infrastructure companies to be certified for Integrated Management Systems, encompassing ISO certification for Quality, Occupational Health & Safety and Environment.
The bidding process for the selection of the civil works contractor for this project had initially commenced on June 3, 2021 and was extended by three weeks and closed on August 24, 2021. However, no bids were received for the project at that time.
According to the Ministry of Public Works, the Government of Guyana and the India EXIM Bank then negotiated and came to an agreement that the Ministry of Transport in India would undertake the prequalification of Indian contractors with the intent to draw a broader pool, and the Government launched the financial bids concurrently.
The construction of the 26km four-lane road will include drains, sidewalks and corridor, linking two main prominent areas in the country. Besides linking communities on the East Coast and the East Bank of Demerara, it will also play a key role in terms of diverting traffic.
At an event earlier this year, Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill stated that the contract for this project is expected to be signed during the first quarter of 2022 and that works will begin to advance.
During the reading of the 2022 National Budget last Wednesday, Senior Minister with the responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh announced that the government has allocated a sum of $2.3 billion for the East Bank to East Coast Demerara road linkage between Ogle and Eccles.

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