Contracts worth $1.1 billion have been awarded to build a brand new terminal at Bahrain International Airport (BIA), which on completion will be able to receive 14 million passengers.

Duqm Terminal, a unit of Oman Oil Company (OOC), has invited expressions of interests from engineering firms for the construction of topside infrastructure for a liquid storage terminal and dry bulk project at Duqm port in the sultanate, said a report.

Leading global paint manufacturer Berger Paints has strengthened operations in Oman with the launch of a new mega-sized facility that the company said will be by far the largest paint manufacturing facility in the country.

Manara, a leading Bahrain-based real estate development company, aims to complete the infrastructure works for the first phase of its Investment Gateway-Bahrain project within the next six months, said a top official. A multi-million-dinar industrial city, Investment Gateway-Bahrain will come up on a 600,000-sq-m area off the coast of Hidd.

Qatar Rail has started preparations to sign a slew of new contracts for the country’s ambitious rail network and is likely to issue tenders for Doha Metro facilities management and Lusail Tram in the first quarter of the year, said a report. The metro network will be built over two phases and will include four lines.

Arab Center for Engineering Studies (Aces) has been awarded the geotechnical investigation contract for one of the host venues for the 2022 Fifa World Cup. The 40,000-seat stadium located in Al Thumama, Qatar, is expected to host several World Cup 2022 matches up to the quarter-finals stage.

Work on Cityview project to start Work on the stalled Landmark Cityview real estate project in Bahrain is set to begin soon with the developer submitting a plan for construction due to take place from April until December this year.

Mitsui & Company said its consortium has won a major contract from Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP) to develop a $2.3-billion power plant project in the sultanate.

Al Habtoor Group, a leading family-owned UAE conglomerate, plans to build a huge mixed-use development comprising three luxury hotels alongside three high-rise residential towers on a sprawling 800,000 sq m of land in Cairo, Egypt. The project is set to become one of the largest of its kind in the region once completed, said Al Habtoor Group.

Kuwait awarded KD9.7 billion ($32.2 billion) worth of project contracts during 2015, up 20 per cent over the previous year, said an NBK report. Of this, over half of the contracts signed are related to the oil and gas sector, it reported. Key projects included the long-delayed new refinery contract at Al-Zour for KD3.9 billion ($12.

UAE-based shopping mall developer Majid Al Futtaim has announced plans to develop a third city centre project in Egypt at an investment of over E£4 billion ($509 million). Majid Al Futtaim has laid the foundation for the new City Centre Almaza mall, its 14th City Centre – the largest mall network across the Middle East.

GFH, a leading real estate developer and investor, has announced the commencement of site preparation works at its $150-million Harbour Row development in Bahrain.  The development is a mixed-use landmark project within the Bahrain Financial Harbour (BFH) comprising luxury residential units and a promenade with a trendy commercial element.

Al Futtaim Auto and Machinery Company (Famco), a leading supplier of commercial vehicles, construction and industrial equipment in the region, has officially launched operations in Bahrain as part of its ambitious expansion drive across the Middle East.

The value of contracts awarded in the GCC is set to drop sharply by 15 per cent in 2016 as low oil prices hit government spending plans, according to the latest forecast by Meed Projects, the region’s leading project tracking service.

National Aluminium Products Company (Napco), one of the leading extruders of aluminium profiles in the GCC, has been signed up as the official extruder for the upcoming Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort in Oman.

UAE-based Pro Partner Group, a leading business formation and support company, is eyeing key expansion in the region, having already helped more than 200 firms set up operations in the GCC. With major interests in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the company specialises in sectors such as construction, oil and gas and education.

The first 487 units of a two-phase housing project in Bahrain’s East Hidd area are nearly complete, said a top official.  Eighty-five per cent of the construction and infrastructure work has been completed and families could soon receive keys to their new homes in East Hidd, said Sami Buhazza, under-secretary for housing projects.