Altogether ten companies had purchased bid document from Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN). The companies who have submitted their bids are China CAMC Engineering Company Limited, China International Water and Electric Corporation and Sinohydro Corporation.[break]
Triratna Manandhar, director general of CAAN, said the aviation regulator´s board meeting will award the tender to the lowest bidder after conducting technical and financial evaluation of the proposal.
Following the instruction of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and repeated requests by Chinese companies, CAAN had extended the tender deadline for additional 45 days which expired on May 4. Despite the extension, the number of companies purchasing the bid document didn´t exceed 10.
Earlier, lawmakers at PAC meeting had accused CAAN of giving a short deadline of 45 days for such a mega project. Lawmakers were further infuriated after it was revealed that then finance minister Barshaman Pun had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China CAMC Engineering Co, assuring the latter of his support in the bidding process.
The government is preparing to use the soft loan of around $145 million from Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of China for the execution of the project.
The airport, which is targeted to be completed within three years of the commencement of the project, will be able to handle single aisle jet aircraft. In 1975, the government had acquired 3,106 ropanis of land at Chhinedanda in Pokhara for the construction of international regional airport.
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