Japanese company bags contract to supply rails for Chennai Metro Phase II project

The company will supply the minimum-maintenance long lifespan rails, specially designed for the Chennai Metro Rail for use in the Madhavaram-Sholinganallur and Madhavaram-CMBT stretches

CMRL has opted for head-hardened rails, which are said to be easy to maintain and have longer life, for the Madhavaram-SIPCOT Corridor in Phase II Project which passes through Tidel Park where work is in progress. | Photo Credit: M. KARUNAKARAN

Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL) has finalised the contract for supplying rails for two stretches of its Phase II project.

Japan-based Mitsui & Co Ltd. has been awarded the contract for supplying head-hardened rails. The Japanese firm will supply these rails which will be used for laying tracks on two stretches of the Phase II project.

The two stretches are Madhavaram to Shollinganallur, a part of Madhavaram to SIPCOT corridor which passes through Purasawalkam, Mylapore and Adyar (Corridor 3) and Madhavaram to CMBT, a portion of Madhavaram to Sholinganallur corridor which touches CMBT, Vadapalani, Porur and Madipakkam (Corridor 5), according to CMRL officials.

“The rails will be specially designed and will require minimal maintenance with a longer lifespan. In the Phase I project, the contractor who was chosen to carry out track work purchased the rails. But for Phase II, we floated separate contracts and one firm will provide the rails and another will execute the track work. It was done specifically to cut the overall cost of the project,” an official said.

Expected timeline

These two stretches of the Phase II project are likely to be completed within five years, the officials said.

In three years, the first stretch of the Phase I project, Poonamallee to Power House, that forms a section of Poonamallee to Light House via Nandanam (Corridor- 4), will be ready, the officials added.