Srei hopes to bag Hyderabad Metro Rail project

Kolkata, Jan. 18 (PTI): Srei Infrastructure Finance Ltd and its consortium has been shortlisted for the mega Rs 4300 crore integrated Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS) in Hyderabad."The Srei-led consortium has been shortlisted by the Andhra Pradesh government for the Hyderabad metro rail project," Srei official spokesperson said.A total of 16 bidders had submitted an _expression of interest (EoI) and the deal is likely to be finalised by the month end.According to available information, two companies have been shortlisted but no official version could be got.The Srei consortium consists of Essar Construction, Singapore Technologies and SMRT Corporation.The project will select bidder on built, operate and transfer (BOT) basis and a total 59.45 kms will be covered in the first phase.The project would take almost three years to construct and implement the first two corridors and another two years for the third corridor.As per estimates 11.11 lakh commuters would use the MRTS per day in 2008, which will increase to 12.21 lakh commuters per day by 2011.The fare for the system was fixed at Re 1 per passenger per km for an initial distance below 2 km the fare is Rs 5 per passenger.The Andhra Pardesh government had contemplated launching MRTS to overcome the increasing pressure of population and transport bottlenecks.