NHA to convert Super Highway into Motorway on BOT basis

National Highway Authority will undertake project of conversion of the Super Highway into Hyderabad-Karachi Motorway (M-9) on build-operate-transfer basis and the work is likely to start by December this year.

This will subject to the achievement of financial close by the concessionaire in time. An official source informed APP on Friday that ECNEC had already approved the PC-1 of conversion of 04-lane Super Highway into 06-lane Motorway M-9 Project and issued directives to NHA for undertaking this project on Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis.

The project was advertised on Build Operate-Transfer basis in August, 2013, and the bids were received on February 18, 2014. Technical evaluation of bids is in progress, he added. To a question, he said that presently Super Highway was in dilapidated condition due to heavy traffic and expiry of its designed period.

He said for repair and improvement of the highway, NHA approved periodic maintenance schemes under Annual Maintenance Plan (AMP) 2013-14 amounting to Rs.305.28 million. The construction work on M-9 motorway project is expected/planned to be completed by May 2017.

It may be mentioned that twice in the past few years the NHA awarded the contract to two firms on BOT basis but both failed to complete financial close as per conditions of the contract and their contracts were terminated.

The project will cost Rs 6.3 billion and the scope of work includes expansion of the road from four to six lanes and provision of service areas. In September 2006, the authority had signed a concession agreement for construction of the 136 km M-9 with Standard Construction but the contract was cancelled next year as the firm failed to complete financial close in time.

In 2011 the NHA awarded the contract of construction of Carica-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) to Malaysian Construction Company M/s Binapuri Holding, on BOT basis with concessionaire period of 28 years.

However, the NHA was forced to terminate the contact in September 2012 as the said firm failed to complete financial close in stipulated time.

The Super Highway begins north of Carica at the end of Mohammad Ali Jinnah Road, near junction of Carica Northern Bypass (also known as M-10). It is connected with the Carica Northern Bypass with a trumpet interchange.

Then it continues out of the city. From there it continues on a north-east track and forms a junction with the N-5 via a link road. The highway ends outside of Hyderabad, in the suburban town of Kotri with a cloverleaf interchange where it merges into the N-5.

The M-9 Motorway will have seven interchanges, two service areas at the midway points and 16 toll plazas on entry and exit points.