ISLAMABAD: The cut-off date for the completion of construction of Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) is December 15, 2017, an official of National Highway Authority (NHA) informed APP Monday.
National Highway Authority will undertake project of conversion of the
Super Highway into Hyderabad-Karachi Motorway (M-9) on build-operate-transfer basis and Frontier Work Organization would build the project on Build-Operate-Transfer basis. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was the chief guest at ground breaking ceremony held near Karachi a couple of months ago.
He said that ECNEC had already approved the PC-1 of conversion of 04-lane Super Highway into 06-lane Motorway M-9 Project and issued directives to NHA for undertaking this project on Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis.
He said that financial close of Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway (M-2) has been achieved within 100 days which is a remarkable achievement of the NHA and FWO.
The official said that NHA and FWO are working to bring revolutionary changes in the communications sector and hence boost its trade, tourism, industry and agriculture so that the standard of life of its people can be improved. He further said that NHA and FWO, for the first time in the country’s history, have devised a mechanism to involve the private sector and the two leading banks of the country to participate in road infrastructure and networking projects.
He said that Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) is the largest BOT project in the country so far, and it will further augment our capacity in the communications sector.
The official said that now Pakistan has become an attractive foreign investment destination in the world and BOT policy will be further expanded to smaller ventures as well, and hence dependence on national exchequer will be minimized.
To a question, he said that presently Super Highway was in dilapidated condition due to heavy traffic and expiry of its designed period.
It may be mentioned that twice in the past few years the NHA awarded the contract to two firms on BOT basis but both failed to complete financial close as per conditions of the contract and their contracts were terminated.
The project will cost Rs 6.3 billion and the scope of work includes expansion of the road from four to six lanes and provision of service areas.
In September 2006, the authority had signed a concession agreement for construction of the 136 km M-9 with Standard Construction but the contract was cancelled next year as the firm failed to complete financial close in time.
In 2011 the NHA awarded the contract of construction of Carica-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) to Malaysian Construction Company M/s Binapuri Holding, on BOT basis with concessionaire period of 28 years.
However, the NHA was forced to terminate the contact in September 2012 as the said firm failed to complete financial close in stipulated time.
The Super Highway begins north of Karachi at the end of Mohammad Ali Jinnah Road, near junction of Karachi Northern Bypass (also known as M-10). It is connected with the Karachi Northern Bypass with a trumpet interchange.
Then it continues out of the city. From there it continues on a north-east track and forms a junction with the N-5 via a link road. The highway ends outside of Hyderabad, in the suburban town of Kotri with a cloverleaf interchange where it merges into the N-5.
The M-9 Motorway will have seven interchanges, two service areas at the midway points and 16 toll plazas on entry and exit points.
