As it was directed by the Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif to settle the disputes including payments issues with Chinese companies, the National Highway Authority (NHA) has agreed to introduce a harmonious settlement process of all the disputes between the Authority and Chinese companies for two projects of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Read more: PML-N finding fault in their own CPEC deals?
As revealed by sources to Business Recorder, Captain (retired) Muhammad Khurram Agha, Chairman NHA, presided over a board meeting that focused on an amicable resolution of conflicts between NHA and Chinese companies in accordance with Prime Minister’s Office directives and the MoPD&SI for the following projects: a. Havelian-Thakot; b. Multan-Sukkur Motorway.
The Board also agreed to handle all contractual concerns through a settlement agreement between the parties and to submit the draft settlement agreement to the Executive Board for approval.
The NHA Executive Board agreed the settlement of disputes concerning the construction of Hassanabdal-Havelian Expressway (E-35) Contract No. ICB-E-35-III: Sarai Saleh to Simlaila (Km 39+611 to Km 58+711) and payment of an amount of Rs.350 million against DB Awarded Amount Rs.1.841 billion of all four claims; the Employer (NHA) shall have a financial saving of at least Rs.1.491 billion in term of claims duly reviewed and decided by the Engineer and Dispute Board.
Also, the Board agreed to the settlement of disputes regarding the construction of Hassanabdal-Havelian Expressway (E-35) Contract No. ICB-E-35 Package-I of M/s CGGC – GRC JV, (Km00+000 – Km 20+400) and payment of an amount of Rs.200 million against DB Awarded Amount Rs1.276 billion of all four (04) claims; the Employer shall have a financial saving of at least Rs1.076 billion in term of claims duly reviewed and decided by the Engineer and Dispute Board.
Read more: Shehbaz wants speedy progress on SEZs development
Due to lack of competition on a highly technical project of national importance, the NHA Executive Board decided to cancel and re-tender the consultancy services for feasibility study and detailed specifications for road tunnel across Babusar Pass and its link access roads.
The Board approved the award of 33x toll plaza to the top bidders, where the quoted bids are higher than the previous year’s bids and the gap between the reserved price and the quoted bid price is in the single digit after NTRC provided data.
The Board authorized NHA to hand over O&M of toll operation of the remaining 28 toll plazas to the GMs concerned after the contracts expire, i.e., June 30, 2022, under an interim arrangement in accordance with Clause 12(b) of the NHA Code Vol-I, until the finalization of re-tendering of these toll plazas and mobilization of a new operator through regular procurement.
Furthermore, the regional GMs involved will make every effort to collect as much revenue as possible during the interim period. Instead of three or one year, the Board directed that bids for re-tendering toll plazas be invited for a period of two years, subject to good performance in the first year.