Madras High Court halts Nemmeli desal tender

The tender process for a desalination project in Chennai has been frozen by the Madras High Court in Tamil Nadu, reports Times of India.

The tender was halted on a successful challenge brought by local firm Singh Electricals and Constructions, which claimed that the deadline for bids ought to have been extended when a new tax system was introduced in 2017.

Instead, Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) pressed ahead with the tender, selecting a bidder to move forward, despite all five bids having been labelled invalid by the evaluating company.

CMWSSB issued an international tender in 2016 for design, construction, and maintenance over 20 years of a 150,000 m3/d desalination plant at Nemmeli.

The tender process is on hold until 10 July.