SAIL re-tenders Tasra coal mine project

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Steel Authority of India has re-tendered the four-million-tonne Tasra open-cast coking coal mine redevelopment project in Jharkhand.

Five companies have submitted techno-economic bids to be evaluated for inviting the financial bids within a month, according to sources.

Apart from the development of the proposed mine, the project includes setting up a pithead coal beneficiation plant (washery) and facilitating rehabilitation and resettlement of people from the proposed mine site. Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDIL) and Crisil are offering consultancy to SAIL for project planning and tendering.

The project - considered difficult due to dense human settlement at the proposed mining site - was tendered once. Two firms, Sainik Mining and G S Atwal, were short-listed for submitting financial bids.

Though Sainik later emerged as the lowest bidder, SAIL felt that the quotations were 'abnormally high' and decided to re-tender the entire project.

Initially the steel major considered splitting the resettlement and rehabilitation and, mine development-cum-installation of washery projects for greater clarity on price bids. However, SAIL decided to club bothin a single contract.

According to a SAIL source, Sainik Mining and G S Atwal have once again participated in the latest tendering process.

"The techno-economic bids for Tasra project were opened today. Five companies including Sainik and Atwal have participated in the re-tendering process," a source said.

Taken from Business Line