Highways Ministry won't reconsider Chinese firm's bid

The Highways Ministry has ruled out reconsidering a bid offered by a Chinese Company for the construction of part of the Central Expressway project, despite an appeal to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. (Please s e e Po l i t i c a l Commentary on Pages 14 and 15 for details of its complaint).

A senior Highways Ministry official said the bid had come from a subsidiary of the wellknown Chinese Company MCC (Metallurgical Corporation of China Ltd) and not directly from the MCC.

He said taking into consideration that the offer had come from a company under the MCC, and not the main company, issues about the bid bond and the bank commitment letter, the company had been left out of the tender. If the MCC had bid for the construction of the 20 km of the expressway between Rambukkana and Galagedara the company may have been considered, he added.

The reaction came after the company known as MCC International Incorporation Ltd claimed that its bid was comparatively less than the other company that had bid for the project.

The Ministry official said that since the company was disqualified on other grounds, its financial offer did not arise and ruled out the reconsideration of its bid.