Power Mech Projects outbids Adani for operations and maintenance of monorail

Power Mech Projects emerges lowest bidder to handle operations and maintenance of Mumbai monorail with Rs 296.4 crore offer (File)

In a step ahead for Mumbai’s monorail, Power Mech Projects Ltd has emerged as the lowest bidder for the task for handling the operations and maintenance of the line. With a bid of Rs 296.4 crore, the company outbid Adani Infrastructure Management Services Limited with a bid of Rs 308.4 crore. While the monorail still has a way to go till regular functioning begins again, the decision to appoint a single-point for O&M for the line was made to reduce technical malfunctions and improve coordination.

Initially, the monorail was being looked after by a consortium of Scomi Engineering and Larsen & Toubro, till it was cancelled by the MMRDA on claims of poor maintenance. But on taking over and shifting to annual and separate contracts for operations and maintenance, technical issues and complaints continued.

The MMRDA then made the decision to outsource O&M to a single private entity in March 2025, inviting tenders for it. The process of opening the bids has then been on since November.

Bids by the other two companies, Indwell Constructions Private Limited and Konkan Railway Corporation Limited, were rejected due to technical reasons; Indwell due to not meeting the qualification criteria of the tender, and Konkan due to its failure to get the minimum technical score needed.

While this makes arrangements for the monorail’s eventual functioning, the fate of the 19.5km line from Sant Gadge Maharaj Chowk to Chembur remains in a state of limbo after it was shut in September. The MMRDA continues to tackle the deployment of new rakes and overhauling the CBTC signalling system, with a clear deadline not in sight. There is also the larger issue of the line bleeding money, as it made a loss of Rs 524 crore in 2023-24.