The Padma bridge project consultant has suggested that the communications ministry should investigate the allegations brought by two bidders that the third bidder, Chinese company Sinohydro, is not eligible to bid for the river training job.
The issue must be resolved before the bids evaluation process proceeds further, Maunsell Aecom, the consultant, said in a letter to project director Shafiqul Islam.  
Sinohydro, Korean Hyundai and Belgian Jan De Nul submitted financial proposals to the Bridges Division on June 19. Evaluation of their bids is going on.
Hyundai and Jan De Nul separately wrote to the communications ministry that Sinohydro was currently under temporary suspension by the World Bank and thus not eligible to bid for the river training work.
The Chinese company in its proposal offered the lowest price, Tk 9,224 crore, for the job. It has additionally offered a 5.6 percent discount on its offer, slashing the price down to Tk 8,778 crore.
Hyundai and Jan De Nul have offered to do the same job for Tk 12,122 crore and Tk 12,324 crore.
The consultant suggested that Bangladesh Bridges Authority should formally ask the World Bank and other donors (ADB, Jica, IDB) to confirm whether Sinohydro or any other entity of the company were debarred, cross-debarred or under temporary suspension in any ongoing sanction proceedings.
The authority should also obtain legal advice regarding the statement by Jan De Nul that the public procurement regulations of Bangladesh would debar Sinohydro from participating in the bid if the company was debarred, crossed-debarred or under temporary suspension by the WB or any other donor, the consultant said.
Earlier the project director told The Daily Star that the evaluation committee usually takes care of all the complaints.
After the main bridge, river training is the costliest component of the $3 billion Padma Bridge project.
Sinohydro pocketed the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway Expansion job by making a similarly low offer in 2010. But later it totally stopped the expansion work on 140 km part of the highway and started demanding higher payment. Till date, the company has completed less than 50 percent of its work that was supposed to be completed by December 2013.