Gulf Construction Online

Regional News

In Brief

01 January 2019

Logistics hub at Duqm

AL MADINA Logistics Duqm Company and Duqm Port Company recently signed a land investment agreement at Duqm Port in Oman’s Al Wusta Governorate. The agreement includes lease and investment of logistics land with future expansions in the logistics complex located near the Port of Duqm, where an integrated logistics centre will be established, added the Oman Daily Observer report.

The first phase of the project includes construction of a main office building, freight service facilities, specialised project logistics for the oil and gas sector, customs clearance as well as open yard storage for large structures and a container yard. The second phase includes setting up an integrated distribution centre for the management of supply chain and distribution with storage zones.

Batinah Expressway opens

OMANI authorities have officially opened the 270-km-long Batinah Expressway that extends from the end of Muscat Expressway in Halban to Khatmat Milaha in the wilayat of Shinas, said a report.

The road has four 3.75-m-wide lanes in each direction with 3-m-wide external asphalt shoulders and 2-m-wide internal shoulders, reported the Muscat Daily.

The Batinah Expressway boasts 23 interchanges, 17 flyovers and 12 ground passes in addition to 25 bridges, it added.

Hitachi Open Day held

BAHRAIN-based Kanoo Machinery recently hosted Hitachi’s Open Day at its Sitra premises, showcasing the latest offerings from the Japanese manufacturer of heavy-duty construction products in the region. During the event, Hitachi displayed its latest excavators, trucks and construction machinery which are currently available in the Gulf.

A fully-owned business division of Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo Group (YBA Kanoo), Kanoo Machinery is a leading provider of heavy machinery and represents global brands such as Grove, Manitowoc, Hyster, Perkins, and Bobcat, apart from Hitachi.

New ACP plant opens in Oman

OMAN’S first aluminium composite panel (ACP) manufacturing plant was recently inaugurated at Misfah Industrial Area on the outskirts of Muscat, a media report said.

The manufacturing unit is the latest diversification of the Mohammed Riaz & Partners group, a leading building materials company, added the Oman Observer report.

At the launch ceremony, Alu-Panel’s product specialist Tenzin Tsarong gave an overview of ACP within the market place and its advent some 40 years ago, the report said.

He highlighted how the launch of the ACP factory in Oman is a testament to the growth and usage of smarter materials in the marketplace that are aesthetically simple yet elegant, solid yet light in weight and have longer lifespan.

Jusoor inks deal for Liwa project

JUSOOR, a joint venture between top Omani groups Orpic and Sohar Aluminium and Vale, a global diversified mining company headquartered in Brazil, has signed an agreement with Italian construction major Tecnimont, for the funding of Package Two of a major industrial project at Liwa, Oman.

Tecnimont is currently carrying out the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works of Package Two of Liwa Plastics Industries Complex (LPIC) project.

The MoU is in connection with the funding of the construction of parking area, lighting poles and landscaping in Liwa Cultural Centre project, being implemented by Jusoor, reported Muscat Daily.

Work on Package Two will begin in February and will be completed in April, the report added.

Muscat airport wins WTA award

MUSCAT International Airport has won the prestigious title of the World’s Leading New Airport in 2018 at the 25th edition of the World Travel Awards (WTA) hosted in Lisbon, Portugal.

Commercially opened in March of this year with a gross floor area of 580,000 sq m, the new airport has the capacity to serve 20 million passengers per year, with an expansion potential of up to 80 million.

Sheikh Aimen bin Ahmed Al Hosni, CEO of Oman Airports, said: “We are committed to playing a pivotal role in realising the government’s ambitious national logistics strategy and becoming one of the top 20 airports in the world by 2020. The new infrastructure is vital to deliver the level of service that our customers expect and to expertly manage and develop the gateways of Oman.”