Consultancy fees to Aussie firm for Northern Highway swell

The government has decided to revise the original contract sum awarded to SMEC International (Pvt.) Ltd for carrying out consultancy services involving feasibility studies, environmental impact assessment and the preparation of documents to call for expressions of interest for the construction of the Northern Expressway, Mirror Business learns.

The Cabinet, at a meeting held on December 12, 2012, decided to award the contract to this particular company of Australia to carry out such work pertaining to the construction of the Northern Expressway connecting Colombo with Kandy via Kurunegala.

Later, a framework agreement was signed on May 5, 2013 between the Ports and Highways Ministry and China Merchants Holdings International Company Ltd and China Merchants Huajan Highways Company Ltd for planning, designing, financing and constriction of the expressway on a public-private partnership basis.

The Chinese company has proposed new alignments to the expressway to be constructed in stages. Besides, the government has decided to extend the expressway by 61 kilometres up to Dambulla. A Cabinet memorandum approved last week says the initial consultancy firm had been asked to submit technical and financial proposals keeping abreast with the proposed changes to the expressway project.