photo: Rail Baltica.org press materials/An important step in the construction of the Railbaltika project: an international tender for the construction of the main line in Latvia was published
On 12 November, the Rail Baltica national implementing body in Latvia – company Eiropas Dzelzceļa līnijas – launched the largest tender for the construction of the Rail Baltica railway line in Latvia.
The winner of the tender will have to provide construction works of substructure and superstructure for the Rail Baltica railway line of more than 200 km in the territory of Latvia and outside the limits of Riga city, including preparation of the territory, construction of embankments, railway bridges, roads, overpasses and rails and shift of networks.
Tālis Linkaits, Minister of Transport: “This is an important next step in the development of Rail Baltica that certifies Latvia’s readiness to implement the project as soon as possible. The reconstruction of the Riga Central station section has been proceeding already for a year and the construction of the Rail Baltica infrastructure at the Riga International Airport section has also started. We are now taking key steps to be prepared for the new railway line construction. The construction is intended to be implemented sequentially in accordance with the readiness of the sections. The most technically prepared section up to date is in the southern part of the Latvia – Lithuania border. In this way, we can do our best to ensure that Latvia is connected to the European railway system in 2026 as planned and the people of Latvia can assess the benefits of the new railway line for convenient everyday journeys.”
Given the tender’s (“Rail Baltica main line construction in Latvia”) scope, the candidate must have at least 7 years of experience in the construction of railways and other engineering infrastructure. The Contracting Authority is willing to attract construction companies with an annual turnover appropriate to the scale of the project. Previous experience in implementing the Rail Baltica project in Latvia has shown that Latvian construction companies form partnerships with foreign professionals, approbating local and global experience in the execution of such projects.
The candidate must have quality management and environmental management systems and be experienced in a building information modeling (BIM) environment. An international tender will allow to choice of the best combination of cost and professional experience within candidates.
The tender will be held in two stages: during the first stage candidates will be selected therefore evaluation and discussions of proposals, submission of final proposals and the conclusion of the procurement contract will take place in the second stage.
Henrik Hololei, European Commission Director-General for Mobility and Transport: “This announcement is good news for Rail Baltica and the North Sea-Baltic corridor! The mainline is a key missing link on the corridor and it is essential to bring the Baltic region – from Kaunas to Tallinn and beyond – closer and better connect it to central Europe. It underlines the importance Latvia attaches to Rail Baltica and is fully in line with the European Commission’s position on the importance of the North-South connection.”
Up to 85% of the project is financed from the European Union’s Connecting Europe Facility with the remaining part being ensured by the Latvian state budget.
Candidates must apply for the tender by 28 January 2022. The second stage is planned to be announced in April 2022 to conclude a contract with the winner of the second procurement stage at the end of 2022 and start the construction works in the first half of 2023.
Procurement regulations and all its annexes are available on the E-Tenders system of Latvia.
Source: Rail Baltica. org press matrials