The competition for the cable car to Sněžka will continue despite the disputes between companies

Pec pod Sněžkou (Trutnovsko) - The competition for the construction of a new cable car to Sněžka will continue despite potential disputes among companies excluded from the competition. This was decided by the council of Pec pod Sněžkou, which rejected the possibility of canceling the tender and subsequently launching a new competition. The mayor, Alan Tomášek (independent), told journalists today.
Three entities originally registered for the competition. The consortium of companies BAK and Leitner and the consortium of Chládek and Tintěra, along with Leitner, were excluded from the tender because the company Leitner was involved in both bids. Therefore, only the consortium of Doppelmayr and Eurovia CS remains in the competition with a bid of 315 million crowns excluding VAT. The consortium of Chládek and Tintěra offered 299 million crowns, while the consortium of BAK offered a price of 279 million crowns.
"We want to complete the selection process. I believe that the new cable car will be built in 2013," said the mayor. To ensure that Pec does not lose the European subsidy of 230 million crowns, construction must begin in 2011.
The mayor described the current course of the competition as fair. "The only applicant who met the conditions is a potential partner for us," said the mayor, noting that a new competition would mean delays and it would not be certain that a lower price could be achieved.
Leitner claims that it registered for the tender only in a consortium with the construction company BAK. According to it, the bid in consortium with Chládek and Tintěra is false. The company BAK previously stated that it intends to file objections against the results of the tender or possibly an appeal with the antimonopoly office. Its goal is to be reinstated in the competition.
The company Chládek and Tintěra claims that it had a valid contract with Leitner. However, it intends to respect the decision to exclude it from the competition. "We do not anticipate filing an objection to the competition," said Pavel Karlovec, a proxy for Chládek and Tintěra, to ČTK today. He added that the company intends to take legal action against Leitner.
Excluded applicants have about a week left to file objections. By Christmas, the evaluation committee should also conduct a detailed assessment of the bid from Eurovia CS and provide the council of Pec with a recommendation for the approval of the competition winner. If the council approved the winner, the mayor could sign a contract with the company. However, the potential filing of objections and challenging the competition with the antimonopoly office would delay the signing of the contract.
Tomášek noted that so far no objections to the competition have been filed. Disputes among the excluded companies, according to him, are their concern and should not affect the competition.
After signing the contract with the construction company, the city should call for a competition for the loan provider for the construction of the cable car. The loan should be up to 100 million crowns. The mayor admitted that if the conditions imposed by banks for providing the loan were unfavorable for the city, the entire project could be jeopardized. So far, the city has invested ten million crowns into the project. The total costs of the construction, including project documentation and other activities, are estimated at 400 million crowns including VAT.
If construction were to begin next spring, the over-60-year-old cable car would cease operations in September 2011. The structure of the current cable car, including concrete bases, will be dismantled. This will primarily be done using a helicopter. The new cable car is expected to go into trial operation in June 2013.
The new cable car will have four-seat cabins instead of the existing open two-passenger seats. Access to the cable car will be more comfortable as the lower station will be moved closer to the parking lot of the Lesovna cottage. The intermediate station at Růžová hora and the upper station at Sněžka will remain in their places. The hourly capacity of the cable car will remain at 250 people. However, the new cable car will be better able to withstand wind. Annually, around 100,000 tourists will travel to the summit by the cable car.