In Brief
The Supreme Court examined whether a Chinese government-owned holding company (CRRC Corporation) could rely on its subsidiaries' experience when bidding as a single entity in a metro coach tender without forming a formal Joint Venture or Consortium. The appellant was disqualified for lacking experience under the tender's clause 2.4 when evaluated independently. Reversing the High Court, the Supreme Court held that 'single entity' bidders under tender clause 4.1 include government-owned entities with 100% wholly owned subsidiaries as an integrated whole. The Court reasoned that the subsidiaries' combined experience is attributable to the holding company through structural integration, without requiring formal JV/Consortium formation. Pre-bid clarifications restricting subsidiary experience to formal JV/Consortium cases did not apply to the parent company bidding as a single entity. The disqualification was set aside as arbitrary and illegal.
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