Central Kalimantan coal railway tender winner to be announced in June
Friday, November 5 2010 - 12:35 AM WIB
The railway is expected to start operation in two or three years after the start of the construction, Syahrin Daulay, the province's head of development planning agency, said.
Of a total of 10 firms that have submitted participation documents, four have passed the pre-qualification stage of the tender for the project.
The four bidders are a consortium comprising Itochu and Toll consortium, the consortium of Drydocks and MAP Resources Indonesia, Bakrie Indo Infrastructure and a consortium led by Mega Guna Ganda Semesta, he said
Earlier, Central Kalimantan governor Agustin Teras Narang said that the winner will build a 185-kilometer railway from Puruk Cahu to Bangkuang, connecting coal mines and plantations in hinterland to ports.
?The railway will be built under a build, operate, own and transfer contract. The length of the contract is flexible depending on negotiations,? Agustin said.
It is part of the railway network that the province wishes to build in six stages in cooperation with investors in a bid to drive the province's economic growth. The province is listed as one of the least-developed regions of the country despite the fact it is rich with minig resources and have a lot of lands that could be converted into plantations. All the resources however remain untapped due to the lack of infrastructure.
The long-term railway project will start with the construction of a 185-km railroad between Puruk Cahu and Bangkuang, which will be followed by the construction of a 175-km railway connecting Bangkuang and Lupak Dalam seaport.
In the next four phases, the railway network will link Kudangan-Kumai (195 km), Puruk Cahu-Kuala Kurun-Kuala Pembuang (466 km), Tumbang Samba-Nanga Bulik (418 km) and Kuala Kurun-Lupak Dalam (390 km).
?We choose railroad to transport mining products as we consider it massive, stabile, cheap, fast and environmentally friendly mode of transportation,? Syahrin said. (giok)