The National Highway Authority (NHA) suspended the bid opening for the Rs85 billion Tranche III of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) corridor project following allegations of an unfair evaluation process.
The decision was made at the last minute, leaving representatives of 11 shortlisted firms waiting at the NHA headquarters for the scheduled bid opening at 9:30 am.
An NHA spokesperson confirmed that the bidding process was halted on the recommendation of the Grievance Redressal Committee (GRC). The process will resume once the GRC decides on a complaint submitted by one of the bidders.
Tranche III comprises four lots, for which technical and financial proposals were submitted by 20 firms. These include six firms competing for the 58km Lot-1 (Rajanpur-Jampur), seven for the 64km Lot-2 (Jampur-DG Khan), five for the 112km Lot-3 (DG Khan-Tibbi Qaisrani), and two for the 96km Lot-4 (Tibbi Qaisrani-DI Khan). Following technical evaluations, five firms qualified for Lot-1 and Lot-2, four for Lot-3, and two for Lot-4. The total approved cost of the project is Rs85.44 billion.
The project involves the construction of an additional carriageway on the N-55 highway, converting the existing two-lane road into a four-lane highway between Rajanpur, DG Khan, and DI Khan. The NHA is already executing Tranche I and Tranche II of the CAREC corridor, which includes a 66.37km section between Petaro and Sehawan and a 43.4km section between Ratodero and Shikarpur.
Sources indicated that some firms raised concerns over alleged favoritism in the evaluation process, prompting the delay in bid opening.
The CAREC program, a regional initiative involving 11 countries and international development partners, aims to facilitate economic cooperation, infrastructure development, and poverty reduction through coordinated policy and investment strategies.
