Thimphu: India’s infrastructure and construction firm Maytas Infra, promoted by the family of
Satyam Computers’ founder B Ramalinga Raju, may bag the construction rights of Bhutan’s Dagachu Hydropower Plant as it emerged as the lowest bidder for the project.

In a tender floated in July last year among four Indian construction companies for the construction of civil package of the project, the controversy-ridden Maytas Infra appears to be the likely winner, Bhutanese media reported.

With Maytas Infra quoting the lowest, the actual construction of the project, earlier scheduled to begin by February, “will be delayed by two to three months”, an official of the Dagachu Project told Bhutan Times.

Since Maytas Infra is entrenched in controversy, the project official said they will not take a hasty decision in awarding the work. The company is promoted by the family of
disgraced Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju.

“Maytas Infra is the lowest bidder,” said the official of the 114-megawatt project but did not give details of the amounts quoted.

According to the newspaper, Maytas Infra quoted Nu 3.8 billion (Rs 380 crore). Hindustan Construction Company Ltd (HCC) quoted Nu 4.2 billion and Patel engineering Nu 6 billion. The fourth company, Gammon India, was disqualified as it did not meet the tender requirements.

If awarded the work, the integrity pact of the contract document can be a hitch to the company, the official said. According to the document, the bidder has to commit that
it will not be involved in any form of corruption.

The document also states that the company which is awarded the work should not have been involved in any corrupt practice in the last three years.

“If the bidder makes incorrect statement on this subject, he/she can be disqualified from the tender process or the contract, if already awarded, can be terminated for such
reason,” the document states.

Since the firm has been promoted by Raju and his family, Maytas has come under scanner, particularly in connection with major infrastructure projects it secured from
the Andhra Pradesh government.

Also, there were allegations that funds from Satyam were diverted to Maytas, causing government agencies to verify the infrastructure company’s records as well.

Maytas Infra has orders worth Rs 11,000 crore to be executed in 2-3 years. It issued an IPO in September 2007 with a price band of Rs 320-370 per share. The company had reported a turnover of Rs 1,637 crore for 2007-08.

Meanwhile, the project official said while tender guidelines say the work has to be given to the lowest bidder, Asian Development Bank (ADB) will be consulted before a final
decision. The ADB is funding the project’s civil package.

If Maytas Infra is not awarded the work, the tender committee will negotiate with the second highest bidder, the HCC. In case the negotiation doesn’t work out, then there will be a re-tender which is expected to take another six months, further delaying the construction kick off deadline.

source: DnaIndia

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