Tatas frontrunner for Parliament project

At ~861.9 cr, Tata’s bid is lower than L&T’S ~865 cr

Industrial infrastructure firm Tata Projects Ltd is likely to bag the government’s ambitious Parliament redevelopment project with its lowest bid. Sources said the bids were opened on Wednesday to find a close fight between two Mumbai-headquartered firms—tata Projects at ~861.9 crore against L&T’S ~865 crore.

The Parliament construction project, expected to be completed by the first half of 2022—before India’s 76th Independence Day– had attracted many construction firms, but the bids came from only two companies.

“Since Tata’s bid is lower, it is likely that the project will go to them after due process and evaluation,” said an official privy to the developments. The final award will take some time. After primary checks, the bids will go to the bid committee comprising officials of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA) and Central Public Works Department (CPWD).

Next, the bids will be evaluated by the expenditure finance committee and other government departments. “The entire process may take close to three weeks and an official announcement may come only after that,”according to an official at the MOHUA.

Incorporated in 1979 at Secunderabad (Telangana), Tata Projects has been involved in some high profile construction ventures. In 2017, Tata Projects had won a part of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link contract along with Daewoo. L&T along with IHI Corp had bagged a bigger stretch of the project to construct a bridge between Navi Mumbai and Mumbai.

While a Tata Projects spokesperson declined to comment, sources said the Parliament project would be a big step in the company's plan to emerge as a large infrastructure company. In the last few years, it has also worked in several Metro rail projects including in Delhi, Mumbai and Lucknow. Although the company, led by Banmali Agarwala, took the joint venture (JV) route in the past to build execution capability in new segments, it plans to undertake more independent projects. The company wants to bring all construction companies including Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd under a single umbrella. In 2019, TPL revenues were pegged at ~13,418 crore and profit at ~244 crore.

A new Parliament building is part of the Centre’s grand plan to revamp the central vista—the three-kilometre stretch between India Gate and Rashtrapati Bhawan on Raisina Hill. The CPWD has already finalised the architecture firm, with the deadline for the entire project set at 2024. The project involves setting up of a central secretariat complex, housing all central government departments and ministries, and redeveloping the old Parliament building or setting up a new structure.