Byeollae Line Railroad Integrated Wireless Communication Network (LTE-R) construction project was confirmed. The ordering company, Seoul Metro, will restart bidding on the 6th and open the bid on the 10th.
Byeollae Line LTE-R construction project is a section of Byeollae Line that extends Subway Line 8, and the total distance is 12.9 km. Six stations and one general control center were included. The operator would build and supply base station equipment, repeater equipment, portable terminals, and antenna equipment. Construction work will be completed by October next year, and commissioning and actual operation are scheduled to begin in 2023.
The budget allocated for the LTE-R construction project for Byeollae Line extension is approximately 4.5 billion KRW. The scale is small compared to the National Railroad Corporation projects, such as the Honam Line and Gyeongbuk Line, where budget is in the tens of billions KRW. It is smaller than Subway Lines 2 and 5, which was previously carried out by Seoul Metro, as well as Line 8, which was recently carried out. It is analyzed that the three major mobile telecommunication companies did not participate in the bidding because the business was small, judging the business feasibility.
Byeollae LineLTE-R construction project involves upgrading the existing on-board train radio equipment of Line 8 to LTE-R. In relation to the Seoul Metro's existing LTE-R improvement plan for Line 8, the construction operator must propose measures when it is impossible to improve or upgrade at the same time as Byeollae Line.
An official from the mobile operator said, "We did not participate in the project because it was judged that the scale of the project was small and due to a combination of reasons such as the Line 8 project."
However, there is still room for all three major mobile carriers to participate again as the Seoul Metro is conducting a re-bidding. While all three companies are contemplating whether to bid, it is analyzed that LG U+, which won the LTE-R project for Line 8, is most likely to participate.
LG U+ official said, "We are considering whether to participate in the re-bid from various angles."
If the re-bid is also unsuccessful, it is highly likely that the bid will proceed until a bidder is found. However, if all three major companies do not bid, there is a possibility that the project budget will be increased and a re-posted.
By Staff Reporter Yelin Jung (yeslin@etnews.com)