IRB Infrastructure has decided not to participate in the bidding process for the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link project, a sea-link from the city to Navi Mumbai. The company had been shortlisted for the Rs 9,630-crore (US$1.5 billion) project but it informed the lack of support from Maharashtra state's co-ordinating agencies and the shattered confidence in urban infra projects in the state, led them to abandon the bidding process.

Elevated road project in India

IRB said in a letter to the Mumbai Metropolitan Commissioner, informing about its decision to quit the project:

"The experience we have had in one of the urban infrastructure projects in Kolhapur has shattered our confidence to invest in urban infrastructure projects especially in the state of Maharashtra,"

Virendra Mhaiskar, Chairman and Managing Director of IRB, said:

"We have decided not to bid for the project. This decision has been taken mainly owing to the bitter experience we had in one of our toll BOT (build-operate-transfer) projects in Kolhapur where we did not receive the expected support from the government. However, if the situation changes in the near future and the state shows some political will to support urban infrastructure development on the PPP model, IRB would definitely rethink on bidding for the project.

IRB had partnered with Hyundai Engineering to bid for the project. The deadline for submitting the bids for the 22-km Mumbai TransHarbour Link (MTHL) is today, August 5, 2013.The other four consortia shortlisted for the project are the following:

• CINTRA - SOMA - SREI;
• Gammon Infrastructure - OHL Concessions -G S Engineering;
• GMR Infrastructure- Larsen & Toubro Ltd - Samsung C&T Corp;
• Tata Realty and Infrastructure-Autostrade Indian Infrastructure Development - Vinci Concessions Development