On May 14, the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport and NPBC signed a concession agreement to build the 58-km express highway under the Private Financing in Build and Operation of Infrastructure Act 2006. As per the pact, the company will be permitted to hike the rates annually from 3.5 percent to 10.5 percent till the end of the 30-year contract period. NPBC will hand over the highway to the government in 2043 as per the BOOT Act.
NPBC has categorised vehicles into motorcycle, car/jeep/van/taxi, bus, minibus, microbus, multi-axle vehicle, truck and mini truck for the purpose of toll collection. The charges for travelling from Kathmandu to Hetauda have been fixed at Rs 180 for a motorcycle, Rs 904 for a car, jeep, van or taxi, Rs 2,373 for a bus, Rs 1,130 for microbus, Rs 2,486 for a truck and Rs 4,520 for a vehicle with more than three axles
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Toll rates for different sections of the tunnel highway have also been fixed. According to the agreement, the charge for travelling from Kathmandu to Kulekhani has been fixed at Rs 118 for a motorcycle.
“The Infrastructure Toll Review Board can review the toll rates every five years depending on the requirement,” said Lal Krishna KC, vice-chairman of NPBC. He added that the government’s future policies regarding mega infrastructure could also reduce or increase the toll rate.
NPBC will build the tunnel highway at a cost of nearly Rs 35 billion and operate it up to 30 years under the build own operate and transfer (BOOT) modality. The highway will link the Capital with Hetauda in the south via Kulekhani. The drive is expected to take one hour, drastically slashing present travel times and resulting in fuel savings of Rs 15 billion annually, according to the Physical Infrastructure Ministry.
Officials of the Physical Infrastructure Ministry said that the government had assigned the project to NPBC as it was proposed for development under local resources and save travel time and reduce spending on fuel. Currently, the road distance between Kathmandu and Hetauda is 133 km over Tribhuvan Highway and 227 km over Prithvi Highway. The Physical Infrastructure Ministry has estimated fuel savings of Rs 800 per car and Rs 3,000 per heavy truck on each trip.
NPBC has stated that it will be able to repay its investors within eight to 12 years of operation of the highway . Local government bodies, general people, businessmen and non-resident Nepalis, among others, have invested in the highway that will have three tunnels at Chobhar, Kulekhani and Bhainse with a combined length of 4.5 km.
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