WORK on one of the largest shopping malls of the Middle East has taken a step forward with the appointment of a contractor to start the foundation works.

THE Saudi construction sector is set to grow at 7.2 per cent this year, according to a report by Business Monitor International (BMI), which predicts project delays. In its Saudi Arabia Infrastructure Report Q1 2014, BMI attributes the delays to labour and material shortages.

THE new King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, will be ready by the end of this year, said Prince Fahd bin Abdullah, president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA).

PHASE One of the $1-billion International Medical City (IMC) in Salalah, Oman, will start soon, with significant headway having been made on the groundwork, according to its promoter, the Saudi-based Apex Medical Group. A request for proposals (RFP) is due to be floated soon for the construction of the main hospital.

LEADING global architecture and design firm Perkins+Will has been selected to design a new five-star hotel in the Diplomatic Quarter in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The low-rise four-storey structure, which is due for completion in 2016, is inspired by the beauty of the country’s wadis and oases.

CONSTRUCTION projects worth $69.91 billion, across all building sectors, were completed in the GCC in 2013, while contracts valued at $71 billion were awarded during the year, according to a study.

QATAR’S construction industry is expected to grow at the rate of 10.1 per cent in 2014, as a $150-billion infrastructure programme gets under way in preparation for the 2022 World Cup, according to a report by Business Monitor International (BMI), a leading, independent provider of proprietary data, analysis, ratings, rankings and forecasts.

MANNAI HED, the heavy equipment division of Mannai Trading Company of Qatar, has sold the country’s first 300-tonne Grove all-terrain crane to ConXion, a local logistics and heavy equipment specialist. The new high-capacity crane offers essential reach and power to both lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally.

THE Haramain high-speed link connecting Makkah with Madinah in Saudi Arabia will open by the end of next year, said Wasmi Al Ferraj, director general of expansion projects at Saudi Railways Organisation. Al Ferraj said that the line’s station in Madinah is now 52 per cent complete.

Motorcity and AluServ officials ... at the handover. AluServ gets Hyundai forklift MOTORCITY, the sole distributor of Hyundai Heavy Industries Company in Bahrain, has handed over two units of Hyundai’s 16-tonne forklift to AluServ Middle East.

SAUDI ARABIA’S booming construction and contracting market is expected to be worth SR1.12 trillion ($300 billion) by 2015, according to the Council of Saudi Chambers, which also highlighted the problems faced by the industry and the need for an authority to boost the sector.

SWISS power giant ABB has won orders worth over $60 million to increase transmission capacity and provide power to the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. ABB said it has won the orders in the fourth quarter of last year.

QATAR’S Public Works Authority (Ashghal) has awarded contracts worth QR10.18 billion ($2.79 billion), including three key deals under the Expressway programme. Of the three contracts worth QR7.71 billion ($2.

BAHRAIN’s Ministry of Transportation has signed two key agreements to spur the modernisation of Bahrain International Airport. A BD6.9-million ($18.2 million) contract was signed with Hill International to provide project management consultancy services for the airport modernisation programme.

WORK has started on the next phase of the $6-billion (BD2.2 billion) Durrat Al Bahrain development off the southern coast of Bahrain. Fayrooz 800 will feature 168 villas built across two petal-shaped islands at a cost of approximately BD50 million ($132.62 million), including infrastructure work.

MORE than BD66 million ($171.7 million) was spent in Bahrain on 71 infrastructure projects last year, according to the Ministry of Works. The ministry also indicated that 77 projects worth around BD116 million ($307 million) were put out to tender during the period.

TEN major sewage and construction projects worth more than BD50 million ($131.9 million) were completed by Bahrain’s Works Ministry last year. They have led to more access to sewage systems, better water purification, enhanced rainwater drainage and a new Hawar Island port, among others.