IRT issues global tender to procure 100 electric buses for MTC Chennai

Chennai, India (Urban Transport News): In order to improve its attractiveness, the Government of Tamil Nadu has planned to overhaul the state’s delivery of bus transport by prioritising climate-friendly modernisation and improving the service quality of public bus services in major cities through the fleet replacement and expansion, to cope with an increasing population and travel demand in the state.

In this context, the Government of Tamil Nadu (GoTN) has signed a project-specific loan and grant financing agreement with the KfW and German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development in August 2019. KfW is a German State-owned investment and development bank established in 1948 in Frankfurt, Germany. KfW is committed to improve economic, social and environmental living conditions across the globe. KfW will be providing capital assistance to the Government of Tamil Nadu for procurement buses under the financial cooperation agreement. 

As part of the above project, the Institute of Road Transport (IRT) is planning to procure and deploy one hundred (100) 12 m, low floor AC e-buses along with charging infrastructure, bus repair and maintenance equipment and spares etc. to be set up by the Bus Supplier at the allotted depot, in the city of Chennai and provide training for e-buses and charging infrastructure as part of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) Chennai operations on a pilot basis (Pilot e-bus Project).

The procurement shall be carried out as per the latest Guidelines for the Procurement of Consulting Services, Works, Plant, Goods and Non-Consulting Services in Financial Cooperation with Partners published by KfW. This purchase will be seen as a precursor to a much larger purchase of a further 400 units to be allocated to Chennai and other cities within Tamil Nadu based upon the success of the initial operational launch. The procurement of all 500 buses is planned to be completed by 2024.

The invitation for an EOI aims to 1) solicit the interest from potential bidders, 2) seek a market perspective on potential solution options considering the MTC baseline functional requirements below and broad specification (as provided in Annexure 1).

Key Information

• Scope of Procurement: Supply and deployment of 12 m 100 Low-Floor AC Electric Buses for Urban application on behalf of Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC), Chennai, Tamil Nadu along with Charging Infrastructure and bus repair and maintenance equipment and spares etc.
• EOI Issue Date: 24th June 2022
• Downloading of EOI Document: 24.06.2022 to 22.07.2022
• Last Date for EOI Submission: 22.07.2022 till 03.00 PM
• Opening Date of EOI: 22.07.2022 at 03.30 PM

The interested parties may submit their views/proposals on the proposed Pilot Project through the EOI within the timelines and as per the formats provided in the document.

The cost of procurement of electric buses will be funded by the German development bank KfW.

MTC (Chennai) Limited is a Govt. of Tamil Nadu Undertaking that currently serves an area of 3929 sq. km through urban and semi-urban bus service, comprising a fleet of 3,454 buses, carrying more than 3 million passengers daily. The bus fleet includes ordinary, express, deluxe, AC, and women cum children special services operating from 31 depots spread across the Chennai Metropolitan region.

The Institute of Road Transport (IRT) is a state-owned body that functions as the institutional knowledge partner of the Transport Department. With regard to this project, it will be in charge of the procurement process as a procurement agency/issuing agency on behalf of the Transport Department.