Kochi Metro Floats Tender For Third Rail Traction System To Fast-Track Pink Line Launch

The Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) has issued open tenders for the supply and installation of a third rail traction system, a key step in advancing Phase 2’s Pink Line towards its first operational segment by 30 June 2026, reported The New Indian Express.

The tender, released on 6 August, covers “Design Verification, Detail Engineering, Supply, Installation, Testing and Commissioning of 750 V DC Third Rail traction electrification” with a 24 month completion window from the award date.

The Phase 2 project includes the construction of an elevated, electrified metro rail system of 11.2 km and 11 stations along the JLN Stadium-Infopark section.

Originally slated for completion by end-2025, the project deadline was pushed to 31 December 2026 due to funding gaps and delays in utility relocation.

However, KMRL now aims to open the first reach, up to Padamughal by mid-2026.

“The successful bidder should need to complete the work in that session quickly by March 2026. It requires another three months for purposes like testing and all,” a senior KMRL official was quoted as saying by TNIE.

The initial section will include five stations: Palarivattom Junction, Palarivattom Bypass, Chembumukku, Vazhakkala and Padamughal, alongside the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

The second reach, stretching to Infopark, is expected by December 2026.

Funding remains a pivotal factor, with the timely approval of loans from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank by the Union and state governments deemed essential for the project’s accelerated delivery.

The scope also includes setting up Traction Substations (TSS), Auxiliary Substations (ASS), and SCADA systems for operational control.

Queries from bidders will be accepted until 18 August, with the tender submission deadline on 8 September and bid opening on 9 September.

Civil works, awarded to Afcons Infrastructure in June 2024, are progressing, with 600 of 1,961 piles and 350 of 1,601 pile caps completed, as construction activity is now being expedited.

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