ADB cancels tender for wagon purchase

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has cancelled a tender of its funded project for buying 700 wagons for the Bangladesh Railway (BR) on allegations of 'inefficiency' in procurement process.
The Manila-based lending agency has also withdrawn its technical support for a DEMU (diesel electric multiple unit) workshop under the 'Rolling stock operation improvement (RSOI) project.
Sources said the ADB has also held up third tranche of its fund for the Tk 36.02-billion scheme for spending unnecessary time in procurement.
They said the ADB's decision was already conveyed to railways ministry, the BR and Economic Relations Division on December 13.
Under the project, the BR's plan for a feasibility study to set up a workshop for its controversial purchase of DEMU (diesel electric multiple unit) has now been uncertain.
Officials said the BR recently wrote to the ADB for extension of the bidding time to procure 700 wagons-580 metre gauge and 420 broad gauge wagons.
The bid concluded on December 15 for fourth time.
"The ADB didn't concur with the demand of extension of the bid's validity period as an unusually long time has been taken to complete the process," said a source.
When bid preparation to bid validity period usually takes three to four months, he said, BR project office has taken three long years for this component under the umbrella project.
The ADB finds it contradictory to the fundamental rules of procurement, the source said, confirming that funding for the third-part project has been stopped.
The BR sought to procure 40 BG diesel electric locomotives in first tranche, 75 MG and 50 BG luggage vans in second, and open and covered wagons in third.
The ECNEC approved the RSOI project on June 26, 2018.
Of them, the BR completed the procurement of 40 BG diesel electric locomotives.
The contract for the second component was, however, signed on August 31 this year.
The third component, for which tender was invited on January 14, 2019, was, however, not completed for taking long time for evaluation.
The project is supposed to complete by next June.
The ADB was supposed to fund Tk 28.39 billion under the project. The fund for the third component was estimated at $50 million.
BR director general (DG) Mohammad Shamsuzzaman said they have already requested the ADB to reconsider the decision and retender the bid to request the lending agency to fund again.
Sources said the DG has also written a letter, dated December 13, to the ADB.
A senior project official, however, said unnecessary time was needed to prepare tender documents and get concurrence from the funding agency.
The process of retendering the bid has already started, he added.
About cancellation of technical support by the ADB, the official said as the government's decision is not to purchase DEMU anymore, the plan for its workshop would be a waste of time and money.
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