Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project: NHSRCL Invites Bids for Tunnelling Works

The National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) has invited bids for tunnelling Works on Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project, Rail Analysis reported.

The scope of work include testing and commissioning for double line high-speed railway using tunnel boring machine (TBM) and new Austrian tunneling method (NATM) between Mumbai underground station at Bandra-Kurla Complex and Shilphata in Maharashtra as a part of the construction of Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail. The length of tunneling work will be over 20 km.

As distinct from the old Austrian tunnelling approach, NATM uses the geological stress of the surrounding rock mass to stabilize the tunnel itself.

Earlier last month, NHSRCL invited bids for 237 km out of 508 km long Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project. The tender has been invited for projects totalling close to Rs 20,000 crore.

The bidding process was opened as per the guidelines of Japanese ODA Loans. As per the agreement with the Japanese funding agency, JICA, only Indian and Japanese construction firms are qualified to bid. It is likely that some of India’s leading Infrastructure companies like L&T and AFCON will form joint Venture with Japanese companies like Hitachi Construction and Mitsubishi Construction to bid for Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project.

"Bids must be delivered on or before 15:00 hrs on 16th July 2019 and must be accompanied by a Bid Security of INR 200 Crores," said the NHSRCL in its bidding document.

Expected to be completed in the next 48 months, the total length of proposed High Speed Rail Corridor works out to be 508.17km. 155.642 km of the proposed alignment falls in Maharashtra, 350.530 km in Gujarat and 2 km in UT of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

The route of Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail will be passing through two states, Maharashtra and Gujarat and one Union Territory, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, of the Union of India. The train will start from Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai and will end near Sabarmati Railway Station in Ahmedabad.

The high-speed corridor has been proposed with 12 Stations i.e. Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Bilimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand/Nadia, Ahmedabad and Sabarmati, all near major traffic points. Two depots are proposed on either end of the corridor one near Thane and one near Sabarmati Rail Depot.