Mirzaan Jamwal

Qualification documents are now expected on September 28, as prospective bidders asked for more time to prepare for the Manila Light Rail Transit extension project.

The Indian government is calling on the private sector to help develop a 63km mass transit system in Mumbai. Interested parties should submit their qualifications by October 16.

India’s Comptroller and Auditor General has accused the government of systematically benefitting the GMR-led consortium in 2006’s privatisation of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. The government and GMR reject the report’s accusations.

The private sector will be awarded the operation and maintenance of publicly-funded highways for concession periods of four to nine years. It will also be allowed to collect user fees from drivers.

Two consortia were awarded the contract to build 9,301 classrooms across the Philippines in the country’s first social infrastructure public-private partnership. In related news, 13 firms have expressed interest in a $378m expressway project.

Six bidders have expressed interest in the multi-billion-dollar tunnelling contract for the North West Rail Link project in New South Wales, Australia. The project might include a rolling stock PPP.

Bouygues Development and Derwent Living will construct 648 new student units for the university’s multi-million pound Knowledge Gateway project, in Colchester. Aviva is providing debt for the deal.

The UK developer has begun construction of a 10MW wind farm in Nottinghamshire, to be operational in June 2013.

The country’s investment support and promotion agency, ISPAT, adds Astaldi, Posco and Limak to the list of possible bidders for Turkey's oft-delayed $5bn to $6bn roads privatisation package –which includes Istanbul’s two suspension bridges.

Funds jointly managed by the State Bank of India and Macquarie will make their first investment in the roads sector by putting $150 million into highway concessionaire Ashoka Concessions.