BANGLADESH —Mass rapid transit expansion in Bangladesh has achieved a major procurement milestone with the clearance of critical civil and systems contracts across two upcoming metro lines. The Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase (CCGP) has formally approved proposals for eight packages under Metro Rail Line-1 and Metro Rail Line-5 (Northern Route), carrying a collective contract value of Tk 584.77 billion. The approvals follow recent clearance of the revised project proposals by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC), ending an extended period of procedural stagnation. The overarching network is being implemented by Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) with a revised total investment of Tk 2040 billion, co-financed through sovereign resources and concessional loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
For the country’s first subterranean metro route, Metro Rail Line-1 - connecting Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Kamalapur alongside an elevated branch from Nadda to Purbachal, six key contracts were sanctioned. The Tokyu-MIL joint venture, comprising Japan’s Tokyu Construction and Bangladesh’s Max Infrastructure, secured an Tk 180.37 billion contract to construct the main line and stations between Nadda and Rampura. A Japanese consortium of Nishimatsu, TPL, and TODA was awarded the Tk 115.90 billion package for the 5.182-kilometre underground corridor and stations extending from north of Nadda underground station to the airport. In mechanical and electrical works, the Japan-India L&T-Sumitomo Consortium won the Tk 110.65 billion contract for track laying and power infrastructure, while India’s Larsen & Toubro was separately awarded Tk 64.46 billion for signalling, telecommunications, and platform screen doors. Depot civil and building works were assigned to China's Sinohydro-SEBCL JV at Tk 42.85 billion, while a joint venture between China Railway Group (CREC) and China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group (MBEC) secured the Tk 25.34 billion mainline package spanning 5.007 km from the line transition to the Balu River.
Under the Metro Rail Line-5 (Northern Route) project, which spans from Hemayetpur to Bhatara, the purchase committee greenlit two packages. The CREC-MIL-MBEC joint venture secured the Tk 26.70 billion contract to construct the elevated mainline and five stations across the Hemayetpur-Aminbazar and Nadda-Bhatara segments. In addition, depot civil and structural works were awarded to the CPC-HANIL Joint Venture, a partnership between Bangladesh’s Concord Pragatee Consortium and South Korea’s Hanil Engineering & Construction, at a contract value of Tk 18.47 billion. From an urban mobility and economic policy standpoint, awarding these packages revitalizes execution momentum across Dhaka's strategic mass transit corridors. Integrating heavy underground rail with high-capacity elevated arteries directly targets severe road vehicular congestion, lowers urban commuting times, and curbs air emissions across the capital's fastest-growing metropolitan growth corridors.
For international engineering contractors, rolling stock manufacturers, and regional supply chain vendors, the multi-billion-dollar approvals unlock major procurement streams spanning tunnel boring operations, structural steel, signalling electronics, and railway track infrastructure. The extensive participation of international joint ventures underscores cross-border engineering collaboration in delivering complex megaprojects across emerging South Asian economies.
