Two Indian companies have quoted the lowest prices for three 400kV substations, which will be constructed with assistance from the US Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

Among the six technically qualified bidders—five Indian and one Saudi Arabian– two Indian companies offered the lowest prices to build the substations for which the bids were invited on three separate lots, according to the MCA-Nepal, the special purpose vehicle established to implement the MCC Compact programme in Nepal.

Techno Electric and Engineering Company, Linxon India Pvt Limited, Tata Projects Limited, Siemens Limited India, and KEC International India are five Indian companies that submitted the bids. National Contracting Company of Saudi Arabia is another company to participate in the bids.

Of the six companies, Techno Electric and Engineering Company is the lowest bidder to build the Ratmate substation along with connection facilities at Lapsephedi and Hetauda substation and the New Damauli substation.

Bids for the Ratmate substation were invited under the first lot while bids for the New Damauli substation were invited under the third lot. Bids for building the New Butwal substation were invited under the second lot.

Indian company Linxon India Pvt Limited quoted the second most competitive price to build the New Butwal substation, according to the details released by the MCA Nepal.

“It will not take much time to award the contract now,” said an official of the MCA Nepal.

According to the MCA-Nepal, Techno Electric and Engineering Company has quoted $51.79 million for the first package, which is the lowest bid, while the same company also quoted the lowest bid of $39.82 million for the third package.

The company also has the highest technical score among the bidders, according to the MCA-Nepal. Its technical score for the first package is 83.67 and it is 84.11 for the third package.

Linxon India, which quoted the lowest price, has received the second lowest score (77.69) in technical evaluation by MCA-Nepal.

After the failure to award a contract for the transmission lines due to a high price quoted by bidders, the MCA Nepal had solicited the financial bids for building the substations.

The MCA Nepal said cost-cutting measures would be implemented while seeking new bids for the transmission lines, which will have a total length of 315km.

The 40th MCA-Nepal Board meeting decided to advance the 18-km Nepal portion of the Butwal-Gorakhpur power transmission line on a priority basis by separating it from the longer 315-km transmission line.

“The separation of the 18-km segment from the larger transmission line network will enable a quicker procurement process and its implementation in order to ensure that the line is completed on time, by May, 2026, to connect with the lines under construction on the Indian side of the border,” the MCA-Nepal quoted Nabin Raj Singh, joint secretary at Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation as saying in the meeting.