On 5 October 2023, SJSC (VAS) “Valsts nekustamie īpašumi” (State Real Estate)
(VNĪ) announced an open competitive dialogue for construction companies to build a fence in several sections (124 km) of the Latvian-Russian border infrastructure project, informs Renārs Griškevičs, Chairman of the VNĪ Board.
"The construction of the entire infrastructure of the Eastern Border and the strengthening of Latvia's security is VNĪ's top priority. The first objective is to find competent builders to construct a fence on the Latvian-Russian border in places where it is missing. Design and organisation of the use of land should start this year so that the fence itself can be built as soon as possible. To make the fence construction process smoother, the 124 kilometres to be built have been divided into 14 dip-tapes," says Griškevičs.
For more details about competitive dialogue procedure VNĪ/2023/CA-360 "Development and Construction of Documentation Necessary for the Implementation of the Plan of Construction of the Border Fence between the Republic of Latvia and the Russian Federation", please visit the "Mercell" system (www.mercell.com.) Construction companies have until 26 October 2023 to submit their tender.
The technical specifications for the project will be issued to potential candidates that meet the reputation criteria in accordance with competitive dialogue regulations. The maximum deadline for completing the contract is 44 calendar weeks after its conclusion, but the tenderer may offer a shorter time limit for which additional points will be awarded.
The evaluation of the tenders submitted for the competitive dialogue for the construction of the 57 km first priority section is also ongoing. Four tenderers have submitted applications.
The national border between Latvia and Russia is 283.6 kilometres long. The currently constructed border zone infrastructure spans some 230 km and includes patrol tracks (with planked footways, woodchip-surface paths, natural soil-surface paths, and a culvert) and four suspended cable bridges. A fence is built of about 99 km.
At the moment, VNĪ's priority is the completion of the already built infrastructure and construction of a fence in the sections where there is none. The construction will take place in multiple stages. The fence is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, while construction of the rest of the infrastructure is to continue until 2025. Currently, some 180 kilometres of fencing and at least 53 kilometres of border security infrastructure are to be set up on the Latvia–Russia border. Forests have been cleared over a significant part of the border zone next to the Russian border, making it possible to speed up construction of the fence.
Given the previous experience in the construction of the Latvian-Belarusian border protection infrastructure, a study on wild animal trails in the vicinity of the border zone has been carried out. This will enable planning for animal-friendly solutions, if needed.
Implementation of the Eastern Border Construction Project is supervised by the Outer Border Infrastructure Construction Supervisory Committee, which consists of representatives from the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economics, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, State Border Guard, Provision State Agency, VAS "Latvijas Valsts radio un televīzijas centrs", AS "Latvijas Valsts meži", Latvian Geospatial Information Agency and the National Armed Forces.
SRE currently successfully works on the implementation of 35 national-scale projects, 14 of which are in the stage of construction. The total implementation budget of these projects exceeds EUR 336 million. VNĪ provides professional real estate management and maintenance for 371 building and structure properties, comprising 1,007 buildings with a total area of 0.97 million m2, as well as land beneath structures with a total area of 607 ha, and 3,404 land properties with a total area of 883 ha. VNĪ is one of 17 Latvian companies that received the highest platinum award in the Institute for Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability's Sustainability Index 2023, demonstrating good governance and the sustainability of its operations. The company was founded in 1996 and the Ministry of Finance is its sole shareholder.
