HYDERABAD - A week after scrapping the deal with Maytas Infra-led consortium for the Hyderabad Metro Rail, the Andhra Pradesh government Monday decided to invite fresh global bids for the Rs.12,200 crore (Rs.122 billion/$2.4 billion) project.

The process of inviting the fresh bids will begin this week and will be completed by Nov 15, Municipal Administration Minister Aanam Ramanarayana Reddy told reporters after a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

The new firm would be selected through the bidding process, scheduled to begin July 16.

The decision came after the government scrapped the deal with a consortium-led by Maytas Infra as it failed to achieve the financial closure despite the government extending the deadline by three months.

Maytas is owned by the family of B. Ramalinga Raju, the disgraced founder and former chairman of Satyam Computer Services.

“The chief minister has directed to the officials that the Metro Rail should be ready in three to four years,” he said.

The fresh bidding process is likely to further delay the project. Last year, when the contract was awarded to the consortium comprising Maytas and others, the project was expected to become operational by 2012.

While the cost of the project was not revised, the meeting decided to double the performance guarantee money.

“The company which gets the contract will have to deposit one percent of the total cost as performance guarantee. Earlier it was half a percent,” said Ramanarayan Reddy.

An amount of Rs.71 crore deposited by Maytas-led consortium has been forfeited by the government as it failed to meet its commitment.

The companies participating in the bid will have to pass through the pre-qualification bidding and they can participating in technical and financial bidding only if they are found eligible, the minister said.

The three other consortiums who had qualified in the earlier process will have to start afresh and they will not get any preference, he added.

Replying to a question on the viability gap funding of Rs.2,000 crore offered by the central government for the project, the minister said that it will be used if necessary.

The Maytas-led consortium comprised Maytas Infra, Navbharat Ventures, Ital Thai and IL&FS.