VOAK: It is final – The section Hersonissos – Neapoli goes to GEK TERNA – AKTOR CONCESSIONS – INTRACAT

The tender for the middle section of VOAK Hersonissos-Neapoli is taking a big step forward. By decision of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, the association GEK TERNA-AKTOR CONCESSIONS-INTRACAT was declared as a temporary contractor of this large project. The union of the three companies was the only scheme that participated in the process of binding offers that was carried out by the ministry.

Now the next step will be the submission of the necessary supporting documents by the three parties and then the submission of the contract to the Court of Auditors. Then it will go through Parliament for ratification and finally the signatures will “take place” which will signify the beginning of the construction of the very big project. The goal is for the signatures to take place within the year and in 2023 to start the construction of this section with an operating goal for 2026.

The fact is that this triple coexistence created a strong force in the competition, although in the end we did not have the presence of another contender. Let us remember that the TERNA-AKTOR-INTRAKAT trinity is also the contractor of the project for the extension of Kymi Avenue to Attiki Odos.

A PPP project

Regarding this project, it was decided that it will be materialized through the PPP method. The cost amounts to 359.6 million euros. The tender started with the process of expression of interest on October 18, 2018. Then, in 2021, it proceeded to the second phase and on January 24, 2022, the process of submitting binding offers took place, from which the contractor emerged.

The object of the partnership contract is the execution of the project “Northern Road Axis of Crete – Design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of the section” Hersonissos – Neapoli “, through PPP”. The repayment of the final amount will be made with fixed availability payments from the Greek State for a period of 30 years.

In the framework of the partnership agreement, the Private Partnership Body (IFS) is invited to undertake the following:

1. a) elaboration of all the required studies, for the construction of the project, based on the already existing studies, the final design of the project that will result during the assignment process and its environmental licensing.
2. b) construction of all the works, which are foreseen in the studies of the construction design of the project, as well as works of maintenance and upgrade of the constructed parts, which will be included in the final design.

(c) project financing, as will emerge from the final design; and

1. d) maintenance – operation of the road section “Hersonissos – Naples”, as it will be provided in the final design, for the entire duration of the partnership;

as well as an option, for the maintenance and operation of the department “Neapoli – Agios Nikolaos”, which will be constructed with a public project contract, after its delivery for operation, in exchange for availability payments or other partial payments, during the operation period.

The triple competition for VOAK is progressing

As ypodomes.com has already informed you, the triple competition is proceeding at different speeds. The eastern part of Neapoli-Agios Nikolaos is heading for signatures in the summer. The 14.5-kilometer 186m-euro project funded by the Recovery Fund is progressing at a rapid pace.

The central section Kissamos-Chania-Heraklion, whose tender is in progress, has more of a process ahead of it. The green light for the environmental study is still due, in order for it to pass to the final phase, that of the submission of bids by the project bidders. The projection is that at the beginning of 2023 the contractor will be announced and then it will take several months to complete the tender and sign the concession contract.

This is while we’re talking about an axis that was divided into 3 contracts with 3 different implementation methods. The milestone for these two departments will be to operate until 2026, the year in which the Recovery Fund’s project funding period ends. Essentially, first we will see the section after Heraklion and up to Agios Nikolaos operating and then about two years later the central section Chania-Hersonissos will follow and finally the extension to Kissamos.