The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd. (NHSRCL) of India and Afcons Infrastructure signed an Rs. 6397.27 crore contract on Thursday for the construction of the 20.377 km subterranean Package C-2 of the 508.17 km Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR Bullet Train).

Package C2 of the main line will consist of a roughly 3 km "undersea" tunnel through Thane Creek and will connect chainage Km 0.773 (Bandra Kurla Complex Station) to Km 21.150 (Shilphata Ramp).

Afcons Infrastructure is attempting to meet a target of 1888 days (5.17 years) and will be required to use at least three Mega Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) with a diameter of around 14.5 meters to bore approximately 16 kilometers of the tunnel. The next 5 kilometers will be constructed utilizing the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM).

Afcons was designated the lowest bidder for C2's contract in early April 2023, narrowly defeating Larsen & Toubro, and NHSCRL gave a Letter of Acceptance (LoA) to Afcons in mid-May 2023.

MAHSR-C-2 is the IFB number for this package.

Brief Scope: Construction of Tunnelling Works, including Testing and Commissioning, for a Double Line High-Speed Railway between Mumbai Underground Station at Bandra-Kurla Complex (MAHSR Km. 0.773) and Shilphata (MAHSR Km. 21.150) using (TBM) and (NATM).

Afcons will build three shafts at BKC Station, Vikhroli, and Sawli at depths of 36m, 56m, and 39m, respectively, to launch and retrieve three TBMs. NATM tunneling will be facilitated by a 42m inclined shaft at Ghansoli and a tunnel entrance at Shilphata.

With this development, Afcons will most likely begin basic preparatory work by the end of the month, building work by the end of Q3 2023, and actual tunneling work no earlier than Q1 2025.

135.45 km Package C3 (Shilphata - Zaroli) in Maharashtra is the only civil package still open for bidding. NHSRCL is now evaluating technical bids submitted in April from four firms.