MEED Middle East Economic Digest articles from August 2005

MEED Middle East Economic Digest archives from August 2005

Coping with change.(COMMENT)(Editorial)
August 5, 2005... Changes at the top of any government inevitably raise concerns about political stability. When the government in question is in control of the world's largest oil reserves and responsible for Islam's two holiest sites, it is understandable that...

Peace accord faces uncertain future: SPLM leader John Garang's death threatens peace process.(SUDAN)(Sudan People's Liberation Movement)
August 5, 2005... The southern track of the Sudanese peace process suffered a major setback on 31July following the death of former vice-president and rebel leader John Garang. Commander Salva Kiir Mayardit, his successor as leader of the Sudan People's...

On the record.(SEVEN DAYS)
August 5, 2005... "I am assuming responsibility after the loss of the dear one, and I feel that the burden is heavy and the trust is great" King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on his accession

Tehran defuses diplomatic atomic bomb.(IRAN)
August 5, 2005... Tehran called off its plans to restart uranium enrichment on 3 August, temporarily cooling an international crisis and providing breathing room for further nuclear negotiations with the EU. "Clearly we have reached a critical juncture and this...

Nour to stand in presidential election: 29 July.(Ayman Nour)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Egyptian opposition leader Ayman Nour applies to stand against President Mubarak in September's elections. Al-Ghad party leader Nour says he hopes his early application means his name appears above Mubarak's at the top of the ballot paper.

Riot police beat Cairo protesters: 30 July.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Egyptian police disperse pro-reform demonstrators in central Cairo. "I think today is a turning point in the regime's attitude. They became very aggressive again just when we thought they were softening up," says Kifayeh spokesman George Ishak....

Lebanon and Syria pledge new ties: 31 July.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora meets Syrian President Asad on his first official visit to Syria. The leaders issue a joint statement aimed at "bolstering the relationship between the two countries based on equality".

Tel Aviv still striving to get Gaza settlers to go 31 July.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Fifty per cent of Israeli settlers in Gaza will have to be removed by force during the withdrawal, says Israeli Housing Minister Isaac Herzog. "We are doing everything for this figure to be much less."

Bin Laden still conducting operations in Saudi Arabia. 31 July.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Osama bin Laden is still directing attacks in Saudi Arabia, Prince Turki al-Faisal, the kingdom's ambassador to the UK, says. "Some of the events that occurred in the kingdom over the past two and a half years were under the immediate...

Pakistani politician banned in UAE: 1 August.(Maulana Fazlur Rehman)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai bars entry to Pakistani opposition politician Maulana Fazlur Rehman. Rehman, the secretary-general of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal Islamic coalition, is stopped at Dubai International Airport. Officials say he appears on a UAE blacklist.

Lebanese lorries back in Syria: 1 August.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Damascus eases border restrictions with Lebanon to allow hundreds of waiting lorries to cross into Syria. Weeks of delays brought Lebanon's overland exports to a halt and lorries are still backed up at the Masnaa border area.

Iraq and Kuwait to start border talks: 2 August.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Iraqi National Assembly members accuse Kuwait of stealing oil and taking Iraqi territory. The allegations are made ahead of a planned visit by Iraqi representatives to Kuwait to discuss oil drilling on their border.

Islamic Jihad declares truce: 3 August.(NEW DIGEST)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Islamic Jihad orders its militants to stop firing rockets into Israel in the run-up to Tel Aviv's withdrawal from Gaza.

Bouteflika may boycott Arab summit: 3 August.(NEW DIGEST)
August 5, 2005... Algerian President Bouteflika may not attend an Arab summit organised by Cairo at Sharm el-Shaikh, sparking a row between the two states. Algiers thinks the summit of Arab leaders had been hastily organised for the domestic benefit of Egypt's...

Stability and fraternity: a smooth Saudi succession had been expected. But the sons of Ibn Saud are growing old, raising questions about the face of the Saudi monarchy in the years to come.(SAUDI ARABIA)
August 5, 2005... In the end, it went like clockwork. Just hours after the Royal Court on 1 August announced the death of 83-year-old Fahd bin Abdulaziz, his half-brother Abdullah was proclaimed king of Saudi Arabia and Defence Minister Prince Sultan bin...

Debt management: Banque du Liban (central bank) governor Riad Salameh talks to Tom Pepper about the prospects for economic reform and how best to tackle Lebanon's enormous debt pile.(BRIEFING: RIAD SALAMEH, GOVERNOR, BANQUE DU LIBAN)(Interview)
August 5, 2005... It is nearly three years since former prime minister Rafiq Hariri promised donors at the Paris II conference that he would tackle Lebanon's mounting public debt through an aggressive privatisation programme. Since then, the debt pile has risen...

Early 2006 tendering for Khurais packages: Foster Wheeler is assisting with the strategy.(construction of water treatment plants)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Aramco is understood to be targeting the release of invitation to bid (ITB) documents to contractors by early 2006 for the main packages on the estimated $5,000 million Khurais full-field development. Aramco is planning to tender the...

CCC snaps up AFK subcontracts.(Consolidated Contractors International Company)(Abu Hadriyah, Fadhili and Khursaniyah)
August 5, 2005... Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC) has been selected for two major subcontracts on the onshore Abu Hadriyah, Fadhili and Khursaniyah (AFK) oil fields development programme in the Eastern Province. The first...

Baghdad tenders second refinery.(IRAQ)(State Company for Oil Projects )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... State Company for Oil Projects (SCOP), the engineering arm of the Oil Ministry, has tendered another grassroots refinery, this time in the north of the country International contractors have until 3 October to purchase tender documents and 11...

Arab gas line extended.(JORDAN)(Aqaba Development Corporation )(Al-Fajr Company )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Aqaba Development Corporation (ADC), the development arm of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA), signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 1 August with the local Al-Fajr Company for Transferring & Marketing Natural Gas on the...

MEED conferences: premier networking events.(Calendar)
August 5, 2005... 3rd Middle East Capital Markets 20-21 September 2005, Dubai www.meed.com/capitalmarkets 2nd Middle East Rail Projects 27-28 September 2005, Dubai www.meed.com/rail Port of Sohar, Oman: Anchoring success 15-16...

Gasco takes another look at Thamama, Bu Hasa.(UAE)(Abu Dhabi Gas Industries Ltd.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Technical bids were submitted in late July to Abu Dhabi Gas Industries Company (Gasco) for two separate front-end engineering and design (FEED) contracts for the proposed debottlenecking of gas plants at Thamama and Bu Hasa (MEED 22:7:05). ...

KOC pilots Magwa water flood plant.(KUWAIT)(Kuwait Oil Company KSC)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... State upstream operator Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has prequalified three international contractors for a three-year contract to design, supply, operate and maintain a pilot water flood plant at Magwa near gathering centre (GC) 10 on the Marrat...

Riyadh, Tehran cause price spike.(OIL PRICES)
August 5, 2005... Oil prices jumped to more than $60 a barrel on the death of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd but were also driven by increasing tension between Washington and Tehran and refining problems in the US. Spot Brent was trading at $61.50 a barrel on 3...

Banagas studies compressor options.(BAHRAIN)(Bahrain Natural Gas Company)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Bids were submitted on 31 July to Bahrain Natural Gas Company (Banagas) for a conceptual study contract covering its seven gas compressors at Sitra. The six-eight-week study will look at ways to increase the capacity of the existing facility....

Khafji gets busy offshore.(REGIONAL)(Al-Khafji Joint Operations )
August 5, 2005... Al-Khafji Joint Operations (KJO) has issued for bid a second offshore contract in the Divided Zone (DZ). Eight fabricators have been invited to submit bids by 19 September for the detailed engineering, procurement, construction, installation...

KOC to review SEK masterplan.(KUWAIT)(Kuwait Oil Company KSC)(southeastern Kuwait )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... State upstream operator Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) is understood to be pressing ahead with a review of the masterplan for surface production facilities in its southern and southeastern Kuwait (SEK) oilfields. Under the proposed phase 1...

Hiesco wins Shuaiba boiler work.(KUWAIT)(Heavy Industry Engineering & Shipbuilding Company)(Kuwait National Petroleum Company KSC)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The local Heavy Industry Engineering & Shipbuilding Company (Hiesco) has been awarded the KD 10.9 million ($37.5 million) engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to revamp boilers and furnaces at Shuaiba refinery. The company...

Kremenco bids low for Shuaiba work.(Kuwait Refinery Maintenance and Engineering Co.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Kuwait Refinery Maintenance & Engineering Company (Kremenco) is low bidder at about KD 14 million ($48.3 million) for a five-year contract to provide mechanical maintenance services at the 195.000-barrel-a-day Shuaiba refinery. Eight other...

Snam/Tekfen sign up for refinery rehab.(Snamprogetti and Tekfen Insaat ve Tesisat A.S.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The consortium of Italy's Snamprogetti and Turkey's Tekfen has signed the estimated $550 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the phase 1 rehabilitation of the 125,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Mohammedia refinery. The...

Prequals invited for Qarn Alam EPC.(OMAN)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Applications for prequalification have been invited by 8 September by Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) for the estimated $300 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the Qarn Alam enhanced oil recovery (EOR) project,...

NPC awards more contracts: Kurdistan and Arvand subsidiaries place work.(National Petrochemical Co, Arvand Petrochemical Co. and Kurdistan Petrochemical Co.)(Sazeh Consult)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Subsidiaries of National Petrochemical Company (NPC) have awarded two major contracts, for the low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plant in Kurdistan and the mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) plant at the olefins 8 complex in Bandar Imam. The awards take...

Prequals in for Saih Rawl project.(OMAN)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Applications for prequalification were submitted to Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) in late July for the combined front-end engineering and design (FEED) and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the estimated $350...

South Koreans win tanker orders.(QATAR)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... South Korean shipbuilders have won orders worth a total of $2,900 million to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers to serve the RasGas III project. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering will build five vessels at a cost of about $250...

Aramco/Sumitomo formalise Rabigh scheme.(SAUDI ARABIA)(Saudi Arabian Oil Co.)(Sumitomo Chemical Company Ltd.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Aramco and Japan's Sumitomo Chemical Company formally signed on 1 August the joint venture agreement (JVA) for the world-scale integrated refining and petrochemicals complex at Rabigh. The two companies have formed a limited liability...

Bids studied for Aramco pipeline contract.(Saudi Arabian Oil Co.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Aramco is evaluating bids for a major onshore pipeline maintenance contract. About 13 companies submitted bids by late July for the four-year contract which is valued at up to $300 million. Called onshore potential maintenance. the...

Baytur lands Qatar National Library: Turkish firm to build landmark Isozaki building.(QATAR)(Baytur International )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Turkey's Baytur International received a letter of award in late July for the main package on the landmark Qatar National Library project on the Doha corniche. The award, valued at 5245 million, ended an 18-month selection process for the...

Atkins scales new heights for the kingdom.(SAUDI ARABIA)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The UK's Atkins is due to complete by December detailed designs for the tallest building in the kingdom. To be located on King Fahd Street in Riyadh, the mixed-use facility will be 352 metres high and house offices, retail outlets and a...

Bids in for KFH contracts.(BAHRAIN)(Kuwait Finance House)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Financial offers are under evaluation by the US' Jacobs Engineering for the five combined front-end engineering and design (FEED) and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts on the integrated petrochemicals, power and water...

Maaden moves on ammonia scheme.(SAUDI ARABIA)(Ma'aden Ore Mining Co.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... International contractors were due to submit expressions of interest (Eols) by 5 August for a contract to build the world-scale 2,000-tonne-a-day ammonia plant at Ras al-Zour for Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden). Companies understood to...

Priority for Moevenpick convention centre.(EGYPT)(DSD Ferrometalco)(Siemens AG)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... A team of the local DSD Ferrometalco and Germany's Siemens has started work on the contract to build a major convention centre at the resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh to host the World Economic Forum (WEF) in May 2006. The client is Moevenpick...

Durrat bridges repriced, villas bidding nears.(AA Nass Contracting and GP Zachariades )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Revised tender documents were issued to three shortlisted bidders on 31 July for the contract to build the bridges linking the various sections of the Durrat al-Bahrain resort after original bids, in the range of BD 24 million ($63.2 million),...

Reissue due for City Centre tender.(BAHRAIN)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The tender for the main construction contract on the Bahrain City Centre mall project is due to be reissued on 12 September, with a revised bid deadline of 17 October. The new scope of works on the estimated $350 million contract will...

Five in for BFH infrastructure.(Bahrain Financial Harbour)(Harbor construction)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Five companies submitted bids on 1 August for the infrastructure work covering all three phases on the Bahrain Financial Harbour project. They are AA Nass Contracting, Ahmed Mansour Al-A'Ali and Haji Hassan, all local, Sharjah-based Al-Hamad...

UAE to fund more Gaza housing.(United Arab Emirates)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... UAE President Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan has approved $100 million to fund the construction of a new city in Gaza, Khalifa bin Zayed City will be built after Tel Aviv's withdrawal from Gaza and is expected to house 30,000-40,000 people....

Consultant sought for MCH restructuring.(Ministry of Construction and Housing)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The Joint Contracting Command has invited local and international consultants to respond to solicitations of interest by 29 August for a contract to restructure the Ministry of Construction & Housing (MCH). The 12-month project is divided into...

Conco bids low for township work.(Consolidated Contractors Co., Public Authority for Housing Welfare)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Consolidated Contractors Company (Conco) is tow bidder at KD 7.5 million ($25.9 million) for the retendered contract to design and build infrastructure works for sector 1 in the Fahad al-Ahmed township. Mushrif Trading & Contracting Company...

Rikaz moves ahead with City Fanar, Royal Amwaj.(Rikaz Development & Planning)
August 5, 2005... Al-Khobar-based real estate developer Rikaz Development & Planning has awarded three contracts worth a total of SR 121 million ($33 million) to local companies covering marine and infrastructure works on the City Fanar development in the...

Six compete for Jeddah airport programme.(King Abdulaziz International Airport)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Six groups of companies have made technical presentations to the Presidency of Civil Aviation (PCA) to provide programme and construction management (PCM) services on the proposed expansion of King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA) in...

Bids due for Yanbu central hospital.(Royal Commission for Jubail & Yanbu)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The Royal Commission for Jubail & Yanbu (RCJ&Y) has invited companies to submit bids by 23 August for a design consultancy contract to expand the central hospital in Yanbu. The prospective bidders include A Al-Saihati, Sofcon, Saudi Consulting...

Abu Dhabi races ahead with Jazira stadium.(Municipalities & Agriculture Department/Works invites for redevelopment of Al-Jazira football stadium)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The Municipalities & Agriculture Department/Works (MADW) has received bids from four companies for the proposed redevelopment of Al-Jazira football stadium in Abu Dhabi. The bidders are the local/Belgian Six Construct Abu Dhabi Al-Hamed...

Five line up for Fairmont Abu Dhabi.(Thiner internationa, Athena, Saudi Oger, Dubai Contracting Company and Construction Engineering Corporation )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Five companies submitted bids on 30 July for the man construction package to build the estimated $130 million Fairmont Abu Dhabi resort and villas. The bidders are Greece's Athena. Paris-based Thiner international. the local Al-Habtoor...

Workers cleared of DIA deaths.(Dubai International Airport)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai's Court of Appeal has cleared five workers of causing a wall being built at Dubai International Airport to collapse in September 2004, killing five workers and injuring 23. The five men--a foreman, a crane driver, two workers and a...

Marrakech-Agadir motorway gets under way.(Autoroutes du Sud de la France)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Autoroutes du Maroc (ADM) has prequalified 25 companies to submit bids by 29 August for four road construction contracts on the estimated MD 6,200 million ($684 million), 233-kilometre motorway between Marrakech and the southern coastal city of...

Prequals invited for Shahid Beheshti port.(deepwater port)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Contractors nave been invited to prequalify by 15 August for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the Shahid Beheshti deepwater port project, at Chabahar in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan. The...

NDIA labour camp let.(New Doha International Airport, Aljaber Engineering)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The 10th package has been awarded on the $2,500 million New Doha International Airport (NDIA) project, after the local Aljaber Engineering won the labour camp contract. The design and build contract is valued at QR 46.4 million ($12.8 million)....

Prequals due for luxury complex.(Aldar Properties lets contracts for Khalifa A City complex)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Abu Dhabi-based ALDAR Properties has invited contractors to prequalify by 15 August for the contract to build the second phase of the luxury apartment complex in Khalifa A City in the capital. The first phase calls for the construction of 10...

DKV down to three.(Dubai Knowledge Village, Technology, e-Commerce & Free Zone Authority)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai Technology, e-Commerce & Free Zone Authority (Tecom) is close to awarding the main infrastructure contract on the next phase in the development of Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV) after shortlisting three companies. They are Bin Hafeez...

JBR hotels tender nears.(Jumeirah Beach Residence, Dubai Properties )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai Properties is gearing up to invite companies in mid-August to bid for two of the four hotels to be built in the Jumeirah Beach Residence complex. The first hotel, to De managed by Crowne Plaza, an affiliate of UK-based Intercontinental...

New HQ building for KJO.(Khafji Joint Operations, headquarters )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Oger has started work on an estimated $70 million contract to build a new headquarters complex for At-Khafji Joint Operations (KJO) in the Divided Zone (DZ). The four-year contract covers the construction of a five-storey building, with a...

Bids in for metro extension studies: line I interests French, German and Iberian firms.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Three bids have been submitted for the contract to examine and update existing studies for the 3.5-kilometre line 1 extension of the Algiers metro between Tafourah and Oued Koriche. Entreprise Metro d'Algiers is evaluating technical bids from:...

Najaf airport to get facelift.(military airport into a passenger terminal)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Transport Minister Salam Maliki confirmed on 1 August that an agreement with Tehran had been reached to transform and renovate Najaf's existing military airport into a passenger terminal. Under the deal. Iran will provide an estimated $25...

Three in running for national rail study.(Italferr, Dar al-Handasah, Arabtech-Jardaneh, Dar al-Handasah )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Three international companies and consortia are understood to be the frontrunners for the contract to carry out a one-year feasibility study into modernising the kingdom's rail network. They are: Italy's Italferr: a consortium of Canada's CPCS...

Mitsubishi gets LRT green light.(UAE)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The AED 12,450 million ($3,400 million) contract to build the first two phases of the Dubai light rail transport (LRT) system has been signed and is due to come mm force on 6 August. Dubai Rapid Link (DURL), a consortium led by Japan's...

Burj Dubai transport plan under evaluation.(Emaar Properties)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai-based Emaar Properties is evaluating proposals from consultants for a small-scale dual-technology internal transport system for its estimated $20,000 million Burj Dubai development. Ideas under consideration include a tramway network,...

After Fujairah, DPA signs Mina Zayed deal.(Dubai Ports Authority, Mina Zayed)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai Ports Authority (DPA) has signed a five-year agreement with the Abu Dhabi Seaport Department to operate Mina Zayed port. The deal follows a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in January between the two groups whereby DPA offered assistance...

Maunsell takes to water.(Maunsell Consultancy Services Ltd.)(construction of water based public transport system)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... UK-based Maunsell Consultancy Services has started work on a seven-month contract to develop a comprehensive water-based public transport system in Dubai and Sharjah. The firm beat off competition from three other consultants. The study will...

Maaden scouts PMC for smelter and refinery: Ras al-Zour smelter complex will include a power plant.(project management consultancy)(Ma'aden Ore Mining Co.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) has approached companies interested in providing project management consultancy (PMC) services for its grassroots aluminium smelter and alumina refinery at Ras al-Zour. The companies to have received the...

Sofcon goes west to Yanbu.(Royal Commission for Jubail & Yanbu )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The Royal Commission for Jubail & Yanbu (RCJ&Y) has awarded an estimated SR 16 million ($4.3 million) detailed engineering and consultancy contract to the local Sofeon for the expansion of Yanbu industrial area. The five-year contract--which...

Hidd seeks business.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The cabinet in late July approved the details of the project to establish an industrial zone near the new port at Hidd, now known as Bahrain International Investment Park. Capital investment for the 240-hectare first phase is estimated at about...

Magnesium smelter shapes up.(MAN Ferrostaal)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Germany's MAN Ferrostaal has been selected for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the estimated $350 million project to build a large-scale magnesium smelter at Ain el-Sokhna port near Suez. The smelter is being...

DI inks Saudi glass deal.(Dubai Investment Co., Saudi American Glass Company Ltd.)
August 5, 2005... Dubai Investments (DI) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to buy Riyadh-based Saudi American Glass (SAG). The deal, which is still to reach financial close, will become DI's second glass coating facility alongside its Emirates Glass...

Loud Ecco for new Zamil venture.(Energy Central Company, Zamil International Investment Co.)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Saudi Arabia's Zamil Industry Investment Company (ZIIC) has formed a Bahrain-based affiliate, Energy Central Company (Ecco), to provided energy, refrigeration and other environmental support services for large-scale infrastructure projects...

Bids studied for smelter power island: September award for 600-MW plant.(OMAN)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Bids are under evaluation from five companies for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract on the power island to serve the planned Sohar aluminum smelter. An award is due by the end of September. The five bidders are...

Tripoli steps up GMR pace.(great manmade river)
August 5, 2005... The Great Manmade River Authority (GMRA) has awarded contracts worth about $2,000 million on its $20,000 million great manmade river (GMR) project to transport water to the north of the country from huge aquifers beneath the desert in the...

RFP out for Hidd IWPP.(request for proposals, Hidd brownfield independent water and power project)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The request for proposals (RFP) was issued in late July by the Finance Ministry for the Hidd brownfield independent water and power project (IWPP). Bids are due on 2 November. A preferred bidder is due to be selected in early December and an...

New canal for Caspian.(Alborz)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The third phase of the Alborz integrated land water management project has been issued for bid, with a closing date of 19 September. The 30-month project, being financed by the World Bank, centres on the construction of a six-kilometre stretch...

Six in for substation.(international contractors invited by Energy Ministry )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The Energy Ministry has invited six prequalified international contractors to bid by 27 September for a contract to supply and install a 300/132/11-kV substation at Qurain West and expand the existing substation at Shuaiba West. They are:...

Essa wind farm awarded.(Gamesa Eolica)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Spain's Gamesa has won the Eur 48.7 million ($59.6 million) contract to build the 60-MW wind farm at Cap Sim in Essaouira province. Three other bids were submitted to state power company Office National de l'Electricite (ONE). Work is due to...

Dubai ramps up STP plans for Al-Aweer and Jebel Ali.(Dubai Municipality, Al-Aweer sewage treatment plant )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Dubai Municipality has received bids from six local and international companies for the contract to increase capacity by 50,000 cubic metres a day (cm/d) at the Al-Aweer sewage treatment plant (STP). Prequalification has also been launched by...

Skikda desal signed.(Aguas de Skikda, Credit Populaire d'Algerie and Banque Nationale d'Algerie )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... The key project agreements were signed on 31 July for the 100,000-cubic-metre-a-day (cm/d) desalination plant at Skikda with project company Aguas de Skikda. The signing coincided with financial close of a 25-year, $110 million loan facility...

BHEL wins PDO jobs.(Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd., Petroleum Development Oman)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... India's Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) has been awarded two turnkey contracts worth a total of about $208 million by Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) to build captive power plant at the Qarn Alam and Mukhaizna fields, both the site of major...

Prequals in for O&M.(OMAN)(operations and maintenance)(Oman Wastewater Services Company )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... Ten companies app led to pre-qualify by the 25 July deadline to form an operations and maintenance (O&M) joint venture with Oman Wastewater Services Company (OWSC) for the Muscat Wastewater project. According to the Tender Board. they are: Saur...

Three in for Doha West.(QATAR)(Brief Article)
August 5, 2005... At least three bidders are competing for the estimated $150 million contract to design, build and operate the Doha West sewage treatment plant expansion project. They are France's Degremont with Japan's Marubeni Corporation, Singapore's...