SCC-VRS Awarded Mumbai – Ahmedabad Bullet Train’s C8 Contract

India’s National National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd. (NHSRCL) today awarded SCC – VRS JV with a Rs. 307.24 crore contract to construct the 2.127 km Package C-8 (Sabarmati Depot) of the 508.17 km Mumbai – Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR Bullet Train) project.

Package C8 of the main-line (chainage 507.599 to 509.726) within Ahmedabad is the shortest and final of 5 packages within Gujarat state. It deals with civil, building & preparatory works at the Sabarmati train maintenance depot which will be the largest among three depots (others will be at Surat and Thane) planned on this line for the inspection, maintenance and stabling of Shinkansen trainsets.

NHSRCL invited tenders (bids) for its construction, financed by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in October 2020 with a completion deadline of 4 years. Technical bids were opened in February 2021 to reveal 9 bidders out of which only 4 firms qualified.

SCC-VRS JV emerged as the lowest bidder when financial bids were opened in April 2021, but shortly after Montecarlo Ltd. approached the Delhi High Court to revisit their disqualification which was entertained. India’s Supreme Court this week set aside HC’s judgement allowing for the contract to be finally awarded stating “the Republic of India can’t deviate from terms and conditions of a fully foreign funded contract” – see detailed case brief.

IFB Number: Package No. MAHSR-C-8

Brief Scope: Design and Construction of Civil and Building Works for the Depot on Design Build Lump Sum Price Basis for Double Line High Speed Railway involving works for Site Formation, Abutment, Retaining Walls, Roadbed for track, Box Culvert, Roads, Cable Duct, Foundations of OHE Masts, Piping, Drainage, Water Harvesting, Fire Fighting, Landscaping, Boundary Wall, General Inspection Train Shed, Maintenance Depot and other Associated works At Sabarmati between MAHSR Km. 507.599 and MAHSR Km. 509.726 in the State of Gujarat for the Project for Construction of Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail

The depot will cover approximately 84 hectares and a notice inviting bids for constructing its workshop shed, inspection shed, office building, Operations & Control Centre (OCC), machinery & plants under Package D2 is currently pending.

I expect basic pre-construction work for C8 to begin in April and full-fledged construction work in mid-2022.

With this development, all civil packages (C4-C8) of the project within Gujarat have been awarded. This table is best viewed on a desktop device.

Package & Scope	Status
C1: 1.028 km Underground Station at BKC, Mumbai	Bids Invited in November 2019; Current Opening Date: April 7, 2022
C2: 20.377 km underground tunnel between BKC Station to Shilphata, Thane	Bids Re-invited in November 2021; Current Opening Date: March 3, 2022
C3: 135.450 km elevated line between Shilphata, Thane and Zaroli Village (MH/GJ Border)	Tender Notice Pending
C4: 237.1 km elevated line between Zaroli Village (MH/GJ Border) and Vadodara	Under Construction by Larsen & Toubro
C5: 8.198 km elevated viaduct and station within Vadodara	Awarded to Larsen & Toubro
C6: 87.569 km elevated viaduct between Vadodara and Ahmedabad	Under Construction by Larsen & Toubro
C7: 18.133 km elevated viaduct and station within Ahmedabad	Awarded to IRCON – DRA JV
C8: 2.126 km viaduct, building works at Sabarmati Depot	Awarded to SCC – VRS JV (this post!)

A list of all bullet train civil & system packages and their status can be viewed here.

For more updates, check out the High Speed Rail section or my Home Page! Sign up for free instant email notifications on new posts over here. Like this post? See how you can get early-access to updates and support the site over here.

– TMRG