LANDIKOTAL: The Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Tuesday that the government is considering restructuring the Peshawar-Torkham Motorway Project after years of delays and a sharp increase in its estimated cost to around Rs130 billion.
Speaking to reporters, the chamber’s president, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi, said the 47.55-kilometre Peshawar-Torkham Expressway, part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Corridor, was originally planned as a four-lane dual carriageway linking Peshawar with Torkham and providing future connectivity to Jalalabad and Kabul.He said the project was financed through a $460 million World Bank loan. The loan agreement was signed in December 2019 and became effective on June 12, 2020.
The chamber’s chief said that although the original completion deadline was May 28, 2026, construction has yet to begin, and key project documents remain incomplete.According to him, the project was initially estimated to cost Rs41.44 billion, including a 55-kilometre Southern Link Road connecting the motorway with N-55 at Badaber and later with N-5 between Chamkani and Jhagra.
However, due to delays and administrative shortcomings, the project’s estimated cost has now risen to around Rs130 billion, he added.The chamber’s chief said the proposed restructuring excludes the Southern Link Road and instead divides the 47.55-kilometre expressway into three sections of approximately 14.3km, 15km and 15km to facilitate implementation.
He said the Central Development Working Party prepared a working paper last month recommending restructuring of the project and approval of a revised implementation strategy.The chamber’s chief said that the Planning Commission had expressed concern over the project’s slow progress and questioned the performance of the stakeholders involved in its execution. He explained that repeated tendering attempts had to be cancelled because the bids exceeded the estimated cost.
He said the original PC-I was prepared on the basis of a preliminary design. A revised PC-I will be submitted for approval after completion of the detailed design, based on 2025 rates, while negotiations with the World Bank are underway to extend the loan period.
