Minrav Holdings Ltd. (TASE: MNRV), Electra Ltd. (TASE: ELTR), and the Zisapels have won the huge tender to build and operate the IDF training base compound at Hanegev Junction, the Ministry of Defense has announced. Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI) will be the lender for the project. The decision came after the special tenders committee reviewed the bids by the two finalists in the NIS 9 billion tender to build the training base city and operate it for 25 years.
The two finalists were Shafir Civil and Marine Engineering Ltd., with the backing of Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI); and Mabat LaNegev Ltd., a constortium comprising Minrav, Electra, and the Zisapel's Bynet Communications and Computers Ltd., with Bank Hapoalim as the lender.
Ministry of Defense director general Udi Shani said, "Work on the ground will begin within days or weeks. This is a great day for the south."
For the first time, the two finalists were required to include the financial closing when they submitted their bids to the Ministry of Defense tenders committee. This greatly shortens the procedures ahead of building the training base city.
Infrastructures work has already begun at the site, and the defense establishment believes that with the tender decision, construction can begin on the training base city within a few months. The new training base city will service 10,000 soldiers, and nearly all of the IDF's training bases will move there. When the transfer to the Negev is completed, the IDF will vacate expensive land in central Israel, in particular the Zerifin Base, which will become available for residential construction.
Shafir, which lost the huge tender to the Minrav consortium, said, "We wish the winners success. We have turned our attention to other large infrastructure tenders that will be published soon."
The IDF training base city tender is the first of many tenders of a similar size that are due to be published soon, including tenders for the IDF computing and telecommunications center, which is due to open in 2017; and the IDF intelligence center, which is due to open in 2018. The cost of each of these centers will likely be even higher than the cost of the training base city.
IDF Negev Transition Authority director Hezi Mashita said that the training base city would take 30 months to build, but that the timetable could be shortened.
Electra's share price rose 5.2% in morning trading to NIS 340, giving a market cap of NIS 1.2 billion, and Minrav's share price rose 28% in morning trading to NIS 395, giving a market cap of NIS 290 million
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 6, 2012
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