L&T selects Keolis as O&M contractor for Hyderabad Metro Rail System

L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited (LTMRL) has selected Keolis SA of France as an O&M contractor for operating and maintaining the Rs 16,375-crore Hyderabad Metro Rail System (HMRS).

LTMRL, which is the concessionaire for the 71.16-kilometre HMRS, said that it had decided to involve Keolis during the formative stage of the project in order to take advantage of the French company’s expertise in metro rail operations and maintenance. Besides, early involvement would give sufficient time to Keolis to review the detailed design and accordingly recruit and train the manpower.

“They (Keolis) will also be associated with the testing, commissioning and trial runs” of the HMRS, the company stated in a press release here on Friday.

Keolis, a subsidiary of the Euro 30-billion SNCF Group, is a leading public transport operator in Europe, Australia and North America with an annual turnover of Euro 4.1 billion. It has 47,200 employees, including 30,000 drivers, with core business of metro rail, tram, bus and coach. The company is stated to be a pioneer in the operation of driverless metro.

LTMRL chief executive officer and managing director, VB Gadgil, had earlier said that the first stretch of HMRS would be completed in three years. The project has an equity component of Rs 3,439 crore, viability gap funding by the Union government to the tune of Rs 1,458 crore and a term loan component of Rs 11,478 crore.

The company has decided to execute the works in phases to partly operationalise the project even though the company had a mandate to complete it in five years.