As a third-party validation, a joint venture (JV) of international and Pakistani enterprises was chosen to select the most appropriate route for the Rawalpindi Ring Road.
The technical and financial bid was won by a joint venture of Asian Consulting Engineers and Botek Bosporus Technical Consulting. The Project Management Unit (PMU) anticipated a price of Rs30 million, while the JV submitted the lowest bid of Rs25 million.
According to the sources, four companies exhibited an?interest in?technical and financial bidding. These firms were: INTECHO S.R.L International Engineering Consulting, MM Pakistan, SKAFS Consultants and Engineering Services UET Pakistan Consortium, a joint venture of Asian Consulting Engineers and Botek Bosporus Technical Consulting Corporation, and a joint venture of Finite Engineering and Prime Engineering and Testing Consultant.
The MM Pakistan did not show up while the technical committee led by Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) Chief Engineer Dr Habibul Haq Randhawa examined the technical and financial proposals and rejected the SKAF Consultants on technical grounds.
However, they said that in a competition between two joint ventures, Finite Engineering and Prime Engineering & Testing Consultant offered Rs32 million, while Asian Consulting Engineers and Botek Bosporus Technical offered Rs25 million.
The final decision was made at a meeting attended by Commissioner Liaquat Ali Chatha, RDA Director General Saif Anwar Jappa, and Chief Engineer Dr Habibul Haq Randhawa.
Moreover, the agreement between the PMU and the joint venture was planned to be held in a day or two. The company will begin work by the end of May and finish it in six months.
When reached, the RDA head engineer confirmed the news and stated that third-party validation of the Rawalpindi Ring Road would begin soon. After disqualifying two firms, the Punjab government has directed the PMU to seek international bids to appoint a consultant for third-party validation of the road.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif had requested the appointment of a consultant to do third-party validation of the project’s optimal route.