DoTC seeking Japanese firms for LRT-1 train supply deal

Posted on October 16, 2015 07:32:00 PM

THE TRANSPORTATION department is inviting Japanese firms to bid to supply 120 new trains for the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 1, which will accommodate higher passenger volumes once the tandem of the Ayala and Metro Pacific groups extends the line to Bacoor, Cavite by 2020.

“The project will be funded through a loan extended by the Japan International Cooperation Agency. The bid will be exclusive to Japanese-led companies or consortia,” the department said in a statement on Friday.

The new 120 light rail vehicles will be operated in 30 four-car train sets, allowing the line to accommodate 750,000 passengers daily, from just around 500,000 at present.

The winning bidder will also be in charge of the coaches’ technical design, procurement of materials necessary for manufacturing, and ensuring compliance with technical specifications through testing. It should submit plans for project management, design and development plan, as well as inspection, testing and commissioning.

Interested parties can buy bid documents for the supply contract on Oct. 16 and attend a pre-bid conference on Oct. 30. The bids must be submitted by and will be opened on Dec. 14.

The winning Japanese firm must complete the delivery within three years, divided into two batches: in 2017 and 2018.

Light Rail Manila Consortium (LRMC) of Ayala Corp., Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp. (MPIC) and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Pte. Ltd. will construct the train line’s extension to Cavite, which will be operational in the last quarter of 2020.

The consortium bagged in September last year the P64.9-billion LRT-1 Cavite Extension public-private partnership (PPP) project for the rail line that currently runs from Roosevelt in Quezon City up to Baclaran in Parañaque City.

“With the upcoming 11.8-kilometer extension of LRT-1 comes the need to add more trains to the system,” Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya said in the same statement on Friday.

“This will enable us to meet demand, and to maintain the right headway between arriving trains at the stations.”

LRMC took over the operations, maintenance and extension of LRT-1 last September. Its concession agreement with the government will run for 32 years. — Daphne J. Magturo

Source: www.bworldonline.com