The Government through Road Development Agency has opened a Call for Expression of Interest for the construction of a dual carriageway on the Ndola-Lusaka motorway using the Private Public Partnership model
According to a notice issued by the RDA, the government will from March 11th, 2022 start receiving Expression of Interest documents from interest private firms to develop and operate or maintain 327KM from Lusaka to Ndola.
The successful bidder will also be required to rehabilitate 45KM of Luanshya-Fisenge-Masangano road.
The PPP model will also include the Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer Basis in collaboration with the PPP Department at the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.
The bid will also involve the upgrade of the road to a dual carriageway by rehabilitating approximately 327KM of the existing road, constructing approximately 327KM of a new road, and constructing 40KM of a bypass in Kabwe and Kapiri.
The project will also include the rehabilitation of 45KM of Masangano-Luanshya-Moo6.
RDA says this is important in order for the road so that the road to fulfilling its function as a Regional, National and International road network providing for safe operation of various vehicle configurations, pedestrians, and non-motorized transport for a period of at least 2-25 years by encouraging private-sector enterprise and resource to undertake infrastructure development through PPP’s.
The project also involves the Construction of Toll Plazas, Construction of township access roads in Kapiri, Kabwe and Ndola.
Construction of weighbridges.
The Expression of Interest documents can be purchased at a cost of US$10,000 from RDA Headquarters.
On 8 September 2017, former President Edgar Lungu commissioned the construction of the Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriageway.
The PF government had proposed that the route construction would transform the T2 Road (Great North Road) from Lusaka to Kapiri Mposhi, together with the T3 Road from Kapiri Mposhi to Ndola (a total distance of 320 kilometres), into a dual carriageway to ease the movement of vehicles such as trucks, buses, and motor vehicles and reduce on accidents.
As part of the same project, they also planned to do works on the 33-kilometre M6 Road from Masangano Market in Masaiti District to Fisenge in Luanshya District (as a shortcut to Kitwe was be used by motorists wishing to avoid Ndola on the trip to Kitwe.
The dual carriageway would require bypasses around the towns of Kabwe and Kapiri Mposhi together with some grade-separated interchanges where necessary.
Together with the already-existing Ndola-Kitwe Dual Carriageway and Kitwe-Chingola Dual Carriageway in the Copperbelt Province, this proposed road would provide a faster and safer journey from Lusaka to DR Congo.
At the moment, the entire T3 from Ndola to Kapiri Mposhi, together with the T2 from Kapiri Mposhi to Lusaka, is a single carriageway with one lane in each direction.
The total cost of this 320 km road, after several increments, was finalized at $1.2 billion and construction began from Lusaka going northwards.
Some sections of elements strongly criticized the high cost of the road, as it would cost just over $3.7 million per kilometre.
However, only the section of the T2 (Great North Road) within Lusaka, up to the Six Miles Roundabout, had been completed as of 2021, with the Ministry of Finance ordering for the Road Development Agency to halt the project, citing financial constraints.
On 5 August 2021, a week before the Elections, while commissioning the opening of the Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe International Airport in Ndola, President Lungu promised to resume the Lusaka-Ndola Dual Carriageway project immediately if he would win the 12 August elections of 2021.
In August 2021, newly-appointed Infrastructure, Housing, and Urban Development Minister, Charles Milupi, stated that the road would cost less than $1.2 billion under President Hakainde Hichilema’s government.
In early 2022, Hon Charles Milupi stated that completing this dual carriageway was of high importance.
He stated that they would resume works on that road at a reduced cost after the rain season.
More than five years down the line and NOTHING has happened. The Chinese contractor has long left the country, and now we’re starting ANOTHER round of biddings. Which means that real construction won’t start for at least one more year. Zambian governments are VERY good at one thing: INDECISIVENESS. Incredible amateurish
This is surely chipantepante. They promised to work on the road at a “reduced cost” immediately after the rains.
Now they are inviting bids on PPP basis for 25 years.
How do you allow a private company to collect toll fees on Zambia’s busiest trunk road between Lusaka and Ndola for 25 years?
Where then will govt collect revenue from?
How much money is collected on daily basis in toll fees by RDA between Lusaka and Ndola with such huge commercial traffic?
Let govt borrow money and do the road and the money can easily be repaid. This road is a money spinner for govt and should not be given into private hands.
Private interests seems to be at play here. Corruption is rearing it’s head again.
Milupi is really working!
And I am willing to bet that the ultimate successful bidder will be Chinese and the contract sum will be within 10% of the original $1.2billion. Any takers?
LT,
Too much moderating. You are stifling freedom of expression.
Don’t hand over Zambia’s busiest trunk road into private hands on PPP basis.
And for 25 years?
How much money does RDA collect in toll fees on daily basis between Lusaka and Ndola from the huge commercial traffic?
Let the govt borrow money and do the road. This money can easily be repaid as this is a very viable commercial road.
Govt can continue to collect revenue from toll fees and maintain other roads as well, rather than forefeit the money to a private entity for such a long period of time.
I suspect private interests at play here.
Should have had an open tender for fertilizer supply too. But what do I know?
Just watching…. playing with words.
The usual snails pace of the UPND government we voted for. We love you UPND but pull up your socks in terms of pace, from August last year, you can not be calling for bids only now on a road which is claiming lives on a daily basis. Can you please start doing things with urgency, with your pace of doing things I just think this road will be worked on next year, there is the bidding process, there is the selection process, there is the appointment process, there is financial and equipment mobilization, there is personnel recruitment, there is civil works to be done, there are detours to be made and you are only calling for bids now
Why waste my time and companies time bidding for something which we already know will be granted to a upnd sympathetizer. Remember the fertiliser scandal with jangulo?
I hope Toll Gates will be placed on the new bypass roads not on existing main highway as this is robbing taxpayers who have already paid for them.
Too many conflicting statements on this project you have Charles Milupi saying the existing contractor agreed to do the project at half price now RDA is issuing tenders. Why should expression of interest documentations cost $10,000 that is a lot of money even for a European based main contractor?
You can not put a TRUNK road on PPP. Indeed you people have no plans. let Zambia start by putting optional roads on PPP. I agree with Issacher The successful bidder will recover the money within a few years and he will start laughing at us like the KCM man> Akaso manifesting now. You cant run a country like your homes were your wive have to fast and wait for God’s hand for you to spend.
shooterz – This is a very poorly written article three quarters of it is about how PF govt did their tender instead of the important bit of how this tender will be now issued in 2022. Journalists of today are very lazy all this information is at RDA all they have to do is put it together.
I agree with Tarino Orange @9. Govt spent huge sums of money putting up toll gates. So it means we will essentially donate taxpayers money to a private entity for it to use and make their money.
According to available information, here are examples below;
1. Michael sata toll gate in Ndola-$4.3 million
2.Kafulafuta toll gate, copperbelt-$4.2 million
3.Choma toll gate-$3.5 million
4. Katuba-$2.8 million
5.shimabala-$2.2 million
What about other toll gates around the country, such as Wilson mofya in kitwe?
Let govt maintain this infrastructure and let PPP be considered on new alternative roads, which are less important.
Issacher – PPP should only be used on those by pass roads not the highway…any one who wants to shorten the distance to Ndola from Lusaka should use the by-pass and pay that is why its called a toll road …you can not be tolling existing roads someone needs to challenge the govt in courts I am surprised the haulage and Bus unions have been very quiet on this issue.
Mbuzi Meeeeeeeeeeeee – this is not PF cheating all over, corruptly deceiving Zambians @ PF corrupt govt built roads in Zambia!. Roads don’t exist in Zambia, its tracks. Let new roadbuilding begin and will highlight further evidence of PF corruption.
I hope we’ll supervise the cobstruction si thst wd get better quality than past contractors . Mpika-Kapiri Mposhi road is one of our best roads. Get the same competent engineers to help RDA, otherwise we’ll get the same useless RDA engineers who sign off bad works for a quick kickback. responsible for poorly designed and constructed roads during Rupiah and Lungu’s eras
Mr milupi under president HH = less than 1.2 billion $
Under president ECL = More than 1.2 $ billion, Lets wait and see the real cost after construction .