Finnish infrastructure company KONE will supply the elevators and escalators for the underground stations of the Tel Aviv light rail Red Line. The Finnish company won the NIS 150 million tender held by NTA Metropolitan Transit System to supply equipment for 10 underground stations along the line.
KONE won the tender over Schindler Nechushtan Elevators, Thyssenkrupp, Electra, and Otis Elevator. Schindler Nechushtan was initially declared the winner, but the government tenders committee disqualified its bid for not meeting the threshold conditions. KONE was then declared the winner. Following a series of court petitions against the ruling, the petitions were withdrawn last Thursday, leaving KONE as the tender winner. The court also ordered Schindler to pay the court costs of KONE and NTA.
KONE Israel general manager Guy Cabili said, "We put a great deal of effort into winning this strategic tender. We want to thank NTA management and its professional team for their trust." Adv. Lior Mimon and Adv. Lina Makhuli of the S. Horowitz & Co. law firm advised KONE from the bid submission stage and also represented it in the legal proceedings filed by Schindler Nechushtan. KONE is one of the world's three leading elevator and escalator companies. Founded in 1960, it is listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange with a market cap of €21 billion. The Red Line, which stretches from Bat Yam to Petah Tikva, is scheduled to begin operating in late 2021. Half of the line will be underground.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on February 24, 2019
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