KMRL set to ink pact for Water Metro ferries

First of 23 vessels to be delivered within 9 months of signing contract

The uncertainty over shortlisting a firm to manufacture 23 modern, air-conditioned ferries for the ₹750-crore Water Metro project is set to end, with officials of Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) asserting that the bid will be awarded this month itself.

The financial bids were being evaluated, and an all-out effort was being made to ink a contract in a week’s time. German lending agency KfW, which had promised a soft loan, would be consulted since stakeholders had aired concern that technical and other pre-conditions fixed to procure the vessels were too stringent, they said.

The revised deadline to award the contract was February, which was extended thrice to as late as May. Knowledgeable sources attributed this to the four firms, which were in the fray, raising doubts about adhering to the stringent terms and conditions. The permission of the State government would be needed to sign a contract in case there was only one contender. This was highly probable as well, sources said.

According to the contract, the first of the 23 vessels will have to be delivered within nine months of inking the contract and the rest within 18 months. A couple of contenders in the fray are not very confident of adhering to this deadline.

Moreover, they are wary of a steep increase in the manufacturing cost if all specifications fixed by KMRL have to be adhered to.

Sandith Thandasherry, whose firm built the first solar-powered ferry in India, said that relying fully on solar power to operate all components of the vessels would result in a higher cost. “At least, power for air-conditioning must be sourced from the generator. There has to be a trade-off on any one component — zero-pollution, speed, or quick charging — to ensure that the manufacturing cost is within limits,” he said.

For instance, the increase in speed by one knot will require around 40% more power. Thus, 18 kW power is needed to attain a speed of six knots, 28 kW power for seven knots, and 50 kW for eight knots. The insistence on higher speed would result in an increase in the battery component and subsequent increase in the cost, he said.