Gulf Construction Online

Regional News

New Contracts

01 January 2002

Siemens wins power deal

Germany's Siemens AG has signed a $896 million contract to build a power plant in Abu Dhabi.

The company has bagged the turnkey construction contract of the 1,500-MW combined cycle plant, the first phase of a giant power plant park in Shuweihat, 250 km west of Abu Dhabi, with a total designed capacity of around 5,000 MW and 1.4 million cu m of drinking water a day.

The order includes a long-term maintenance agreement and the high-voltage switchgear for the new power plant, which are to be supplied by the Siemens Power Transmission and Distribution Group.

Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (Adwea), which signed the deal with Siemens, has already secured almost the entire financing of the first phase of the project, estimated to cost around $1.6 billion.

Adwea will own 60 per cent of the independent power project (IPP), Abu Dhabi's third, while US power producer CMS Energy and British-based International Power will have 20 per cent each.

The plant will become operational in 2004.

The deal includes an equity bridge of about $351 million and a loan of $1.285 billion, which was underwritten by a consortium of 25 regional and international banks.

Group to award contracts

Dubai: The first set of contracts for Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Group's ambitious Souk Al Nakheel project in Dubai, UAE, will be awarded by the middle of this year.

The site office for the estimated Dh1 billion ($270 million) project, bordering Shaikh Zayed Road, will be set up soon, local media reports said.

The project will have 60,000 sq m of retail space, a 20,000 sq m Carrefour hypermarket, 45,000 sq m of entertainment and leisure facilities, besides food and beverage outlets.

The first phase of the project will commence in late 2003, and the entire facility should be ready by the end of 2004. F&A Associates have been named as architectural consultant for the project.

School in $729,000 expansion

Manama: The Pakistan Urdu School in Isa Town has signed a contract for the construction of its BD275,000 ($729,000) expansion.

Work on the two-storey building will be completed in October. The new 1,200 sq m block has been designed by Arif Sadiq Design Group and will be built by Key Constructions. It will have four laboratories on the ground floor. A multi-purpose hall with a green room and a stage will be built on the first floor.

The building will also be equipped with a passenger lift for six people.

Software park deal awarded

Muscat: Abu Hatim Company has been awarded the contract to design and construct the first phase of a software technology park in Oman.

The RO3.6 million ($9.36 million) project at Rusayl is the first of its kind in the Sultanate, a report said.

The IT Park, which will be located on a 141-acre plot at the Rusayl industrial estate, will function under the Public Establishment for Industrial Estate (PEIE).

The park will have two main buildings - the software block and the corporate block. The software block will have a total built-up area of 10,000 sq m spread across three floors.

The corporate block housing the administrative building and customer-care centre will have a total built-up area of 3,300 sq m.

The project is expected to be completed in 10 months and will be ready for operation by September.

Abu Hatim, which was among 18 companies that vied for the tender, has been involved in the construction of similar IT parks in India, said Abu Hatim managing director KRS Raja.

Qatar to build three schools

Doha: Qatar has awarded five contracts for schools and other infrastructure works.

Minister for Municipal Affairs and Agriculture Ali bin Mohamed Al Khater signed deals with three local firms to build schools - one in Khor costing QR17.75 million ($4.67 million), the second in Sailiyah at a cost of QR16.64 million and the third in Al Sadd at a cost of QR16.69 million, local media reported.

The schools are scheduled to be finished by the end of September 2002.

A QR1 million contract was signed with a local firm for a roads project in Khalifa city, also scheduled to be completed by September. The other deal was won by a specialised company to upgrade a sewage network contract at cost of QR1.69 million.

Ajman signs sewerage deal

Ajman: The Ajman Government has signed a Dh475 million to Dh515 million ($130-$140 million) build-operate-transfer contract with an international consortium to set up a sewerage treatment facility, a report said.

The signatories included Dr Jim Bentley, regional director of the UK's Thames Water, the lead operator, and Douglas Smith, president of Europe operations of Black & Veatch Corp which, apart from having a stake, will be responsible for project construction.

The project has been awarded under a 27-year concession.

The first phase envisages the establishment of a new joint venture company in first-quarter 2002, with construction to start mid-year.