China Railway Construction Company, African Global Development, the Frontline Consortium and China Railway No 10 Consortium met minimum evaluation criteria in the Request for Qualification (RfQ) documents. Sixteen companies expressed an interest in the project and 12 responded to the RfQ. The Ghanaian government says a joint evaluation committee will carry out a detailed technical and financial examination of the bids before selecting a preferred bidder for pre-contract negotiations. The new line will run for more than 1000km from the Ghanaian port of Tema to Ho, Hohoe, Yendi, Tamale and Paga on the border with Burkina Faso. The line will then continue north through Dakola to Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou. The two countries agreed in May 2017 to construct a rail link to facilitate trade and development. A joint committee of experts was established in January 2018 to facilitate implementation of the project. Team Engineering, Italy, and Vision Consult, Ghana, were appointed in November 2018 to act as transaction advisors and carry out feasibility studies along the corridor. Construction is due to begin in the first quarter of 2020. Last month Ghana's Ministry of Railway Development signed a $US 2.2bn build, operate and transfer (BOT) concession agreement with the Ghana European Railway Consortium (GERC) to construct the Tema – Accra - Kumasi standard-gauge line. For detailed data on rail projects in Africa, subscribe to IRJ Pro.
