ISLAMABAD:
In order to go ahead with the construction of the Rs24.93 billion Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway (M9), the National Highway Authority (NHA) signed a build-operate-transfer contract on Monday with Malaysian firm Binapuri Holdings.
NHA Chairman Syed Muhammad Ali Gardezi and Senator Tan Sri Datuk Tee Hock Seng signed the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations.
The project will be completed within three years. Under this project, the existing four-lane Karachi-Hyderabad Super Highway will be upgraded to a six-lane Motorway.
The Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway will be built on the BOT basis and will be 136 kilometres long. Seven interchanges, two service areas and 16 toll plazas are also part of the project. The construction is likely to start next month.
The proposal was presented before the NHA Executive Board which accorded its approval to award the construction contract to the Malaysian company with a concessionaire period of 28 years, including a three-year construction period, an NHA official said.
Federal Minister for Communications Dr Arbab Alamgir Khan was also present during the signing ceremony.
The minister said he would invite more foreign firms from Malaysia and other countries to invest in Pakistan. The ministry of communication will provide all possible assistance to the investors, he pledged.
“BOT projects provide a unique opportunity for countries like Pakistan to develop their infrastructure requirements and meet the various future developmental challenges,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 17th, 2012.
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