Wangu Hill Tunnel M-8 Feasibility Study & Design contract awarded

ISLAMABAD, Dec. 23 (Gwadar Pro)- The National Highway Authority (NHA) on Thursday awarded the contract of the consultancy services for a feasibility study and detailed design for the construction of the Wangu Hill Tunnel on Motorway (M-8) to a joint venture of Pakistani companies for Rs. 482.8 million.

The East-West M-8 connects Sukkur-Larkana to Gwadar, the gateway of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Wangu Hills in Balochistan is a scenic patch of 892 km Ratodero-Gwadar Motorway (M-8).

As per the NHA evaluation report, the contract is being awarded to M/s Prime Engineering & Testing Consultants (Pvt.) Ltd. in JV with M/s Engineering and Management Services in association with M/s Origin Consulting Engineers (sub-Consultant) at rebated/agreed consultancy cost of Rs. 48,274,7001. The JV with a technical score of 778 was declared the top-ranked bidder.

During the bidding, which was held in July 2022, three proposals were received. The procurement was carried out in line with PPRA Rules & Regulations. The bidding was done on the quality and cost-based selection (QCBS) method with an 80:20 technical to-financial proposals ratio.

The 193-km patch between Hoshab and Gwadar was inaugurated in 2016 while the rest of the parts are under construction. Wangu Hill Tunnel is an integral part of M-8.

M-8 is part of the CPEC central route with half of its part being operational. The completion of the tunnel will ease the construction of the rest of the motorway.