Strabag questioning $199 million price tag on Okecie bid

German construction company Strabag, which lost the high-profile tender to build the Warsaw-Okecie airport terminal, claims that it is impossible to construct such a building for the $199 million bid by Budimex Ferrovial Agroman, which won the contract. "Airports built in Germany cost around $2,300 to $2,500 per square meter, while Budimex is offering to build it for only $1,400, whereas we offered $1,900," said Strabag director Jerzy B inkiewicz. "German investors would not pay so much if it was possible to build an airport as cheaply as Budimex is proposing," he added. His company got hold of Polish State Airports (PPL) internal documents which also suggest that Budimex's bid is undervalued. Gazeta Wyborcza cited those documents, claiming that the bid is undervalued by some $49 million. H owever, PPL general director Zbigniew Lesiecki claims that he had sent these analyses to IATA and an experienced consulting company, both of which rejected the charges, supporting Budimex's bid as the best one. Meanwhile, Strabag says that it will approach the Infrastructure Ministry to overturn Lesiecki's decision. (Gazeta Wyborcza, July 20-21, p. 26) T.J.