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MEED
Apr 2009 Online Content

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  • ABB values El-Merk Contract at $490m

    Switzerland-based ABB has valued the construction contract it won at the US/Algerian Al-Merk oil production hub in March 2009 at $490m.

  • ABB wins Hassi R'Mel solar deal

    Switzerland-based ABB has won a $14m contract on Algeria's 150MW Hassi R'Mel solar hybrid power plant.

  • ABB wins work on Algerian substations

    Switzerland-based ABB has won a $56m contract from Algeria's state-owned utility company Sonelgaz.

  • Abu Dhabi airport hikes parking fees

    Abu Dhabi Airports Company has doubled the hourly parking charges from Dh5 to Dh10 at its Terminal 1 and Terminal 1A car parks, due to "increased services offered by the airport and the provision of a cheaper alternative for passengers." It has also scrapped the 15 minutes of free parking.

  • Abu Dhabi airport passenger capacity rises to 12 million

    Abu Dhabi International airport now has capacity for 12 million passengers a year after its Etihad terminal became fully operational.

  • Abu Dhabi bonds hit market

    Abu Dhabi offered $3bn of sovereign bonds at 400 basis points over the London interbank offered rate (Libor), on 1 April, the same day Qatar began seeking investors for a $2bn sovereign issue.

  • Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank profits fall 23 per cent

    Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) has reported profits for the first quarter of 2009 of AED354m ($96.8m), a 23 per cent drop from its AED460m net profits in the first quarter of 2008.

  • Abu Dhabi developer to tender Arabtec project

    The Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) has invited selected contractors to prequalify for a contract to build 295 villas on Saadiyat island.

  • Abu Dhabi guides given cultural training

    The Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) is hosting a series of training programs, which are conducted by Embrace Arabia, to address issues such as how to tailor messages according to different audiences and how to engage visitors with the places they are visiting. The course is attended by ADACH's 15 Emirati guides who are currently working at Al Ain National Museum and Shaikh Zayed Palace Museum in Al Ain.

  • Abu Dhabi hotels benefit from lack of flats

    The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority says up to 25% of hotel rooms in the capital are being occupied by residents seeking flats or professionals on short contracts, reported The National. The lack of available properties to rent in the capital is said to be the cause of the booming trend.

  • Abu Dhabi impounds cars with worn out tyres

    Colonel Ahmed Al Shehi, Director of Capital Traffic Department at the Abu Dhabi Police, said the department impounded 61 vehicles - 40 of them state-owned - for one week, and fined their owners Dhs200 ($54) each for driving vehicles with worn-out or unfit tyres last week. The Ministry of Interior is preparing to launch a new nationwide awareness campaign on the dangers of using bald or unfit tyres on roads.

  • Abu Dhabi invites Saudi highway bids

    Abu Dhabi's Transport Department has invited proposals for a Dhs10bn highway connecting Abu Dhabi city and the border with Saudi Arabia, Meed magazine has reported. Only prequalified consortiums have been asked to submit their tenders, and these have to be received by September 30.

  • Abu Dhabi issues tenders for highway to Saudi

    Abu Dhabi's Transport Department has invited prequalified consortiums to submit proposals for a AED10bn ($2.7bn) highway connecting Abu Dhabi city and the border with Saudi Arabia by 30 September.

  • Abu Dhabi issues tenders for Hudayriat bridge

    Abu Dhabi has set a 7 June deadline for prequalified contractors to bid for a contract to build a road bridge connecting Abu Dhabi with Hudayriat island.

  • Abu Dhabi offers new links to India

    The National Aviation Company of India Limited said it will commence twice weekly nonstop Air India Express flights to Tiruchirapally and Chennai from Abu Dhabi every Thursday and Saturday beginning April 30. The flights will commence with special introductory one-way fares from Dhs149 to Tiruchirapally and Dhs99 to Chennai, excluding taxes.

  • Abu Dhabi petroleum firm receives bids for headquarters

    Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) has received bids from at least four companies for the contract to build its new headquarters building.

  • Abu Dhabi prepares to open airport logistics zone

    Abu Dhabi International airport will sign up the first companies for its logistics zone by the end of the year.

  • Abu Dhabi seeks financing for wastewater plants

    Abu Dhabi Sewerage Services Company (ADSSC) has begun seeking bank commitments for the financing of two wastewater treatment plants that France’s Veolia and Belgium’s Besix are developing.

  • Abu Dhabi sets deadlines for Ruwais management bids

    State-owned Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company (Takreer) has set deadlines for commercial bids on two management contracts for its multi-billion-dollar refinery project at Ruwais.

  • Abu Dhabi T3 'fully operational'

    Abu Dhabi airport Terminal 3 has become fully operational following the completion of flight transfers from Terminal 1. Terminal 3, built at a cost of Dhs1bn, will service only flights from national carrier Etihad.

  • Abu Dhabi takes the lead in Gulf projects market

    Abu Dhabi is pushing ahead with an ambitious $200bn capital spending programme. It has now become the leader of the projects market in the Middle East.

  • Abu Dhabi to have 4,000 new hotel rooms

    The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority has said that it estimates that the emirate will have an additional 4,000 hotel rooms by the end of 2009. The added units will bring the UAE capital's total room numbers to 17,000, including hotel apartments.

  • Abu Dhabi to have 500 extra buses

    Abu Dhabi is to have an extra 500 buses by the end of 2009, bringing the total up to 770 according to the Department of Transport. The department plans to have 1,360 buses in operation by 2010, at a cost of Dhs1.8m each.

  • Abu Dhabi to put metro up for tender

    The Abu Dhabi Department of Transport said it plans to send out a tender for the capital's planned 340km tram system in the next two months. The department also said it will select a consultant for the capital's 130-km metro system in August. The moves are part of a multibillion-dollar transport upgrade for the emirate to prepare for a five-fold increase in daily trips by 2030, according to projections.

  • Abu Dhabi tourism company to raise funds this year

    Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) is in discussions with banks and bond investors about raising additional funds, according to James Pringle, executive director of development at the company.

  • Abu Dhabi unveils $20bn transport masterplan

    The Abu Dhabi Department of Transport has unveiled its full $20bn masterplan for the emirate.

  • ADAC wins award for airline marketing

    Abu Dhabi Airports Company received the Routes Airport Marketing Award for the Middle East at the Routes Asia forum in Hyderabad, India. The award is presented to airports in recognition of excellence in air service development and airline marketing, and voted on by the airline companies.

  • Advance air bookings fall by 50%

    According to senior travel management companies executives, bargains and competitive pricing will play a big role in booking airline tickets this summer, as less than 50% of seats are being booked compared to last year. 'Because of the general economic condition people have become cautious and are delaying the buying of tickets. The new trend, unlike the previous years, is that people are buying tickets closer to the date of travel,' Waseem Rahmany, senior manager, sales and marketing, Al Rai

  • AES Corporation approaches firms over power assets sale

    The US’s AES Corporation has approached companies about the sale of its power assets in Jordan, Oman and Pakistan.

  • Agency downgrades Dow Chemical's rating

    US-based ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has downgraded the US’ Dow Chemical Company’s credit rating from BBB to BBB- and may cut the rating further to BB, adding to the company’s woes following the collapse of a $17.4bn joint venture in Kuwait.

  • Agency downgrades Kuwait Finance House rating

    US-based Fitch Ratings has downgraded Kuwait Finance House to C/D from C and warned it may cut the rating further.

  • Agency gives Abu Dhabi's Ipic a stable rating

    US-based ratings agency Moody's has given Abu Dhabi’s state-owned International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) an Aa2 credit rating, the third highest of its assessment grades, with a stable outlook.

  • Agency puts Dubai firms on creditwatch

    Standard & Poor's (S&P) has placed a number of Dubai government-related companies on creditwatch with a negative outlook after the ratings agency was told by Dubai World it was considering all options including a restructuring for Nakheel's $3.5bn sukuk which matures in December 2009.

  • Agency upgrades Lebanese bond rating

    Moody's Investors Service has upgraded Lebanon’s local and foreign currency government bond ratings.

  • Agents hike pilgrimage fees

    Saudi-based Haj and Umrah agencies have increased the fee for Umrah from Dhs250 to Dhs500 per pilgrim, according to Khaleej Times. Pilgrimage contractors in Abu Dhabi said that the increase was effective from March 29 after the Saudi Haj Ministry introduced a quota system for agencies, reducing the number of allowed Umrah pilgrims from 2,000 to
 800 per agent. A quota system for Haj pilgrimage is already in force.

  • Agility ups Saudi presence

    Agility has said that it has opened a 40,000 square metre warehouse offering over 50,000 pallet locations, located in Riyadh, to serve regional customers from industries such as dairy products, retail, medical systems and telecommunication, as well as international markets including Europe, the Far East and the Americas. 'Agility has grown on a worldwide scale and now has a family of over 34,000 employees. We are operating in over 120 countries through 550 offices, we are acquiring new compan

  • Air Arabia gets early delivery

    UAE-based Air Arabia has gotten approval from Airbus for an earlier delivery date for the first 44 A320 aircraft, from 2012 to the middle of next year. The carrier ordered 34 A320s in 2007 and 10 more in November of last year. Adel Ali, the group chief executive of the airline, told The National that it 'makes sense to receive early delivery instead of leasing aircraft to fill the operational gaps'.

  • Air Arabia goes to Goa, India

    Air Arabia has launched a non-stop service to Goa, India, from the carrier's main hub in Sharjah, UAE with roundtrip flights operating three times per week -- Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, departing Sharjah at 00:25 AM and arriving at Goa at 5:05 AM. Return flights will depart Goa at 5:50 AM and arrive in Sharjah at 7:35 AM.

  • Air Arabia launches service to Athens

    Air Arabia, the largest low-cost carrier in the Middle East, today launched non-stop service to the Greek city of Athens from the carrier's main hub in Sharjah, UAE. The carrier said the new destination is part its strategy to expand its operations to Europe. The new service to Athens represents the airline's 46th destination globally and third in Europe.

  • Air Arabia tops in operational efficiency

    UAE-based low-cost carrier Air Arabia said it has been recognized by Airbus for the fourth consecutive year for achieving the highest level of operational utilization in the world, placing the carrier at the lead among all global airlines operating Airbus A320 aircraft. Air Arabia achieved 99.8% operational reliability, according to a study by Airbus.

  • Al Ain gets aerodrome certification

    Al Ain International Airport has been awarded the Aerodrome certificate from the General Civil Aviation Authority following a successful aircraft crash simulation exercise, and an airport safety oversight audit last month. The airport is the second in the UAE, after Abu Dhabi International Airport, to be awarded full certification, according to the Abu Dhabi Airports Company.

  • Al Ain rail network blueprint unveiled

    Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC) has announced the Plan Al Ain 2030, which features a layered public transport network for Al Ain with a high-speed rail link to Abu Dhabi and Dubai and a surface tram and bus network to connect key areas of the city, in addition to the creation of five new major roads leading to the Central Business District of Al Ain. Falah Al Ahbabi, General Manager of the UPC said the metro network is expected to be in place in the next five to seven years.

  • Al Ezz Steel posts 9% growth

    Egypt's Al Ezz Steel Rebars (Ezzsteel) has reported a net profit of EGP1.2bn in 2008, up by 9% from 2007. Its long product volumes sold enjoyed strong sales directed towards the local market, as local demand increased by 21% over 2007. Its flat products production for 2008 was 17% lower than 2007 production.

  • Al Jaber takes over DIA concourse deal

    Abu Dhabi's Al Jaber Engineering and Contracting is set take over the construction of a third concourse at Dubai International Airport, The National has reported. The Dhs4.9bn contract has been a awarded in December to a consortium of builders, comprising of Murray and Roberts of South Africa, Leighton of Australia, Dubai's Al Habtoor Engineering and Takenaka of Japan. The consortium has announced pulling out of the project after agreements failed with the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation.

  • Al Jaber wins DIA concourse 3 deal

    Dubai Aviation City Corporation has announced the award of the main package of Dubai International Airport's concourse 3 to Al Jaber Engineering & Contracting. The contract includes the construction, completion and maintenance of the civil, architectural, MEP, SAS and signage works for the third concourse. Concourse 3 will be dedicated to Emirates Airlines and will provide 20 contact gates including 18 gates specifically designed for A380 aircraft and it will increase the passenger handling c

  • Alec is frontrunner for Dubai airport deal

    Local contractor Alec is the frontrunner for a contract to build the $1.3bn concourse 3 at Dubai International airport.

  • Al-Fajer awards Jumeirah Business Centre phase 2

    The UAE's al-Fajer Properties (AFP) has awarded the construction contract for the second phase of its Jumeirah Business Centre, part of the Jumeirah Lakes Towers development, to the local Al-Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading.

  • Al-Rajhi insurance listing oversubscribed

    The initial public offering (IPO) of Al-Rajhi Company for Co-operative Insurance (Arcci), the insurance arm of Al-Rajhi Bank, has closed six-and-a half times oversubscribed.

  • Al-Rajhi profits up 8 per cent

    Saudi Arabia’s al-Rajhi Bank has reported profits of SR1.73bn ($461.3m) for the first quarter of 2009, an increase of 8.1 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2008.

  • Alujain reports $2.9m loss

    Saudi Arabian petrochemicals producer Alujain has reported a SR18.8m ($2.9m) loss for the first quarter of 2009, a 17 per cent improvement on the same period in 2008.

  • AMD launches ATI Radeon HD 4890

    AMD has announced its new ATI Radeon HD 4890 graphics card, offering 1.36 TeraFLOPs of compute power, GDDR5 memory, and engine clock speeds capable of nearly 1GHz. The latest addition is suitable for game experience, including the latest DirectX 10.1 titles.

  • American Airlines to test in-flight Wi-fi

    After several months of testing, American Airlines announced it will install flying Wi-Fi hot spots on about 300 planes used in the continental US and charge up to $12.95 for internet connectivity. The American carrier plans to expand Internet access to about half its fleet of aircraft over the next two years as it attempts to raise revenue and improve customer service.

  • Antonov-12 restriction lifted

    The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has lifted a temporary suspension made last January on Antonov-12 air cargo flights out of the UAE. 'We have sent a release letter to the industry and to civil aviation departments in the Emirates releasing this aircraft to operate in the UAE with conditions,' said Saif Mohammed al Suwaidi, the director general of the GCAA. The conditions include operators presenting a letter of certification from the manufacturer, the Antonov Design Bureau in Ukrai

  • Apple posts 15% profit increase

    Apple has posted a Q2 profit increase of 15%, fuelled by sales of its iPhone and iPod products, although sales of its Mac computers fell slightly. Net profits for the three months to March 28 increased to $1.21bn, from $1.05bn the year before, with revenues up by nearly 9% to $8.16bn. Steve jobs is expected to return to the group in June.

  • Apple updates Xserve

    Apple's updated Xserve workgroup server is now available in the Middle East. The server runs on Intel's latest Xeon processors, claiming a significant increase in performance per watt. The company said the server, aimed at the business, education and creative community, delivers an 89% performance increase and 19% reduction in idle power use. The Xserve uses the 2.93GHz Xeon CPU, a 128GB solid state storage boot drive and can handle up to 3 terabytes of hard disk storage. It sells for $2,999

  • April Fool's Day virus appears to have been defeated

    Computer security experts say there has been relatively little fallout from the Conflicker worm that was set to activate on Wednesday, April Fool's Day, as they believe they were able to cut it off from its creators.

  • Aqualyng opens Dubai office

    Norwegian desalination provider, Aqualyng, has announced the opening of its new Middle East headquarters in Dubai.

  • Arab Banking Corporation reports $32m profit

    Bahrain’s Arab Banking Corporation (ABC) has reported a $32m profit in the first quarter of 2009, compared with a loss of $587m during the same period last year.

  • Arab Potash posts $50m profit

    Jordanian Arab Potash Company has posted a Q1 net profit of $50m, compared to $41m in the same period 2008, with sales amounting to 158,000 tons, a drop of 63% from last year's 492,000 tons. Potassium sales reached 77% in the first quarter of this year when compared to 50% of the same period last year.

  • Arab Wings to expand in UAE

    Jordan-based Arab Wings is launching a sister company, 'Gulf Wings', in the UAE emirate of Sharjah. The new company will organize worldwide flights for businessmen, government officials and multinational companies using its fleet of business jets, the company said. Arab Wings currently operates 10 private jets for business travel and medical evacuations, in addition to managing owners' aircrafts.

  • Arabi Enertech bids low for Kuwait pipeline deal

    Kuwait's Arabi Enertech has submitted the lowest bid for a contract covering the repair and replacement of pipelines in southeast Kuwait.

  • Arabtec secures municipal works in Dubai

    Arabtec Engineering Services has won a AED150m ($40m) contract for drainage, sewerage and irrigation connections in Dubai.

  • Arabtec starts work in Saudi Arabia

    UAE-based Arabtec Construction has started work on its first project in Saudi Arabia.

  • Aramco and Sumitomo sign Petro-Rabigh memorandum

    Saudi Aramco and Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Company have set milestones for the second phase expansion of their joint venture Petro-Rabigh petrochemicals complex in Saudi Arabia.

  • Aramco assesses bids for Jubail refinery package

    Seven contractors have submitted engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) bids for an $800m auxiliary utilities package on Saudi Aramco's 400,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Jubail export refinery.

  • Aramco awards Yanbu clean fuels deal

    Saudi Aramco Mobil Refinery Company (Samref) has awarded a $400m contract to Australia’s WorleyParsons for environmental modification work on its 400,000-barrel-a-day (b/d) refinery at Yanbu.

  • BA ups summer flights from GCC

    British Airways has announced its 2009 summer schedule, which will operate 66 weekly flights from eight GCC markets to London Heathrow. The number of flights are 35% higher than its equivalent programme in 2007.

  • Bader al-Mulla wins Kuwait Oil Company deal

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has awarded a KD6m ($20.6m) contract to the local Bader al-Mulla Brothers & Company for the maintenance of fire and gas detection systems at sites in the south and east of the country.

  • BAE Systems wins Iraqi armoured cars deal

    BAE Systems has won a $47m contract from the US Department of Defense to provide support services for armoured vehicles in use by multi-national forces in Iraq.

  • Bahrain inflation falls to 4.3 per cent

    Inflation in Bahrain fell to 4.3 per cent in March, compared with 4.7 per cent in the previous month as inflation pressures across the region ease.

  • Bahrain inflation stable at 4.7 per cent

    Inflation in Bahrain has risen slightly to 4.7 per cent for the year to February, from 4.6 per cent in the year to January, according to the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB).

  • Bahrain plans to increase oil production by 185 per cent

    The National Oil and Gas Authority of Bahrain (Noga) aims to increase production at its Bahrain oil field by 185 per cent through a deal with the US’ Occidental (Oxy) and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company.

  • Bahrain Terminal receives first ship

    The new Bahrain Gateway container terminal at Khalifa Bin Salman Port marked its opening with its first call by a container ship, the 2,500-TEU APL Dalian. The terminal, operated by APM Terminals, has 5,906 feet of berth and a draft alongside of 49 feet. The migration of operations from the old terminal of Mina Salman to the new terminal started April 1. The old terminal will cease operations as a commercial port on May 1.

  • Bahrain to award mandate for sukuk programme

    The government of Bahrain will award a mandate for its sovereign sukuk programme before the end of April, after shortlisting five international banks to run the deal.

  • Bahrain: Cable joints

    Provision of general cleaning services for ministry buildings. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Bahrain: Cleaning services

    Provision of general cleaning services for ministry buildings. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Bahrain: Fishing harbour reclamation and marine works

    Carrying out reclamation and marine works at a fishing harbour. Closing date: 27 May 2009

  • Bahrain: Pump station

    Design and reconstruction of a pump station. Closing date: 13 May 2009

  • Bahrain: Pump station

    Reconstruction of a pump station at an airport balancing pond. Closing date: 13 May 2009

  • Bank Muscat profits drop 50 per cent

    Oman's Bank Muscat has reported a 50 per cent fall in profits after stripping out one-off gains from the sale of a stake it held in an Indian bank.

  • Banks line up for Addur financing

    A total of 14 banks have given firm commitments to an eight-year loan for the planned Addur independent water and power project in Bahrain.

  • BDO Jawad Habib bids low for Oman airport deal

    BDO Jawad Habib is the lowest bidder for a contract to provide consultancy services to Oman’s Transport & Communications Ministry for the overhaul of the country’s airports.

  • Bid deadline for Kuwait gathering centre delayed by one month

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has extended the bid deadline for a contract to build and maintain a new gathering centre in west Kuwait by a month after requests from contractors.

  • Bids in for Abu Dhabi courthouse

    Abu Dhabi Judicial Department has received bids from at least six groups for the contract build the AED1.5bn ($408m) new courthouse complex in Abu Dhabi.

  • Bids in for Doha East and Al-Zour South plants

    South Korea’s Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction with Kuwaiti contractor Mutajer al-Khaleej United General Trading & Contracting Company is the low bidder for two contracts covering the design, supply and installation of distilled water treatment units at the Doha East and Al-Zour South power and water plants.

  • Bids in for Downtown Jebel Ali transport system

    Local developer Limitless has received bids for a contract to design and build a mass transit system at the Downtown Jebel Ali development in Dubai.

  • Bids in for New Cairo wastewater treatment plant

    A total of five companies and groups have bid for the New Cairo wastewater treatment plant project.

  • Bids in for Yanbu power plant expansion

    A total of five companies have submitted bids for the contract to build phase five and six of the Yanbu Industrial city power plant in Saudi Arabia.

  • Bids submitted for Oman airport catering facilities

    The Transport and Communications Ministry has received bids from 15 companies for the contract to provide design and construction supervision services for catering facilities at Muscat and Salalah airports.

  • Boeing Q1 profits fall 50%

    Boeing has announced that Q1 earnings fell by 50%, short of analyst forecasts. CEO Jim McNerney told analysts that during the first quarter, carriers asked for later delivery dates for about 60 aircraft that were due to roll off the group's assembly lines. Net income was $610m, down from the year-ago quarter's $1.21bn.

  • Boeing to improve 737-800 jets

    Boeing said the 2011 model 737-800 jets will be roomier and have improved engine performance and reduced drag, gaining 2% in fuel. The 2010 model will feature larger overhead luggage compartments, sculpted interior walls and mood lighting. Both versions will use design improvements based on the 787 Dreamliner.

  • Borouge expands its operations in Abu Dhabi

    Borouge, a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Borealis, said it is continuing with its plans to expand its polyolefin operations in Abu Dhabi by adding approximately 2.5 million t/y of capacity by the 4th quarter of 2013. The company said it has decided to enter the FEED (front-end engineering and design) stage of its Borouge 3 project, which includes the construction of an ethane cracker, second generation Borstar polypropylene and polyethylene units, an LDPE unit a

  • Bouteflika wins third term as Algerian president

    Abdelaziz Bouteflika has won a third successive term as Algerian president with a reported 90.24 per cent of the popular vote.

  • BP awards Sharjah gas deal to Amec

    The UK’s Amec has won an engineering and project management services contract from BP Sharjah, a subsidiary of the UK energy giant BP, for the company’s onshore gas facilities at Sharjah in the UAE.

  • British Airways increases Gulf flights

    British Airways (BA) will increase the number of its flights to the Gulf by 35 per cent from this summer, demonstrating its continued faith in the strength of the regional aviation market.

  • CBRE inks Worldhotels deal

    Derek Gammage, CBRE Hotels EMEA Managing Director said that the company has recently signed a 'co-operation agreement' with Worldhotels to become the preferred supplier of real estate services including valuations, asset management, buy side support and brokerage throughout Europe, Middle East and Africa. 'Especially in challenging times like these, our hotels can benefit from the expert advice and the support offered by CBRE Hotels in the field of real estate services,' Rob Hornman, VP EMEA

  • CFM wins $270m Gulf Air order

    Gulf Air has placed a $270m order for CFM International's CFM56-5B engines to power 15 new Airbus A320 aircraft, to be delivered between late 2009 and 2013. The airline also signed a $100m, 10-year repair, maintenance and overhaul contract with GE Aviation for the new engines.

  • Circle Oil postpones testing on Moroccan well

    The UK’s Circle Oil has postponed testing on a well at its Sebou concession in Morocco’s Rharb Basin to the northeast of Rabat due to a lack of drilling materials and testing equipment.

  • Cisco opens new facility in Bahrain

    Bahraini Cabinet Affairs Minister Sheikh Ahmed bin Ateyatala Al Khalifa officially opened Cisco's new office and Internet data service facility at Bahrain Financial Harbour. Cisco officials said the new office will enable the company to serve countries in the Middle East and North Africa region quickly and efficiently.

  • City Tower Group launches hotel apartment in Dubai

    City Tower Hotel Apartments, the hospitality arm of UAE-based City Tower Group, has opened a new property in Bur Dubai. The hotel apartment houses 126 units, including studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. City Tower Group also has one hotel apartment facility in Sharjah and one in Deira.

  • CMA CGM profits fall 87%

    Rodolphe Saade, Chief Executive VP of French carrier CMA CGM has said that profits have dropped by almost 87%, to $124m in 2008 from $966m in 2007 as freight rates plummeted on all of its major trade lanes. 'We managed to remain profitable in 2008, although it was obviously not as successful as 2007, which was an exceptional year,' Saade said. '2009 will be a more difficult year, but the company is taking every step to reduce costs, and we have a massive programme in place to recuperate the l

  • Columbus IT launches in Qatar

    Columbus IT has announced the launch of its operations in Qatar through a joint venture with the Ali Bin Ali Group. The company, which is a Microsoft Dynamics partner, has already been operating in the Middle East through offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah and Bahrain. The latest addition to the Columbus IT network will bring international vertical solutions and an established implementation methodology, along with localised, specialist implementation and support teams to Qat

  • Combined Group bids low for Kuwait chemicals work

    Kuwait’s Combined Group Contracting Company (CGC) has submitted the lowest bid for a $50m contract to build chemical-handling facilities in Kuwait, according to contractors in the country.

  • Commercialbank of Qatar reports 2 per cent rise in profits

    Commercialbank of Qatar has reported a 2 per cent increase in fourth-quarter profits.

  • Companies line up for Oman solar project

    Six companies have purchased tender documents for a feasibility study for a large-scale solar power project in Oman.

  • Contractors approached for Capital Centre tunnel

    Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (Adnec) has invited selected contractors to prequalify for a contract to build a road tunnel at its Capital Centre development in Abu Dhabi.

  • Contractors submit bids for Qatar gas service deal

    Eight companies have bid to the UK/Dutch Shell Group for a set of integrated service contracts on its Pearl gas-to-liquids (GTL) facility at Ras Laffan.

  • Contractors submit Jubail refinery infrastructure bids

    Five contractors have submitted engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) bids for a $200m infrastructure package on Saudi Aramco’s 400,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Jubail export refinery.

  • Crescent submits new price to break Iran gas deadlock

    UAE-based Crescent Petroleum says it has submitted a new gas price to Iran’s Oil Ministry in an attempt to strike an export deal with the Islamic republic.

  • Cruise operators face challenging times

    The economic downturn is causing many cruise operators to offer various incentives to attract passengers, including two-for one pricing, family packages in which children sail free, and home-port crusing that avoids the cost of an airfare to reach an exotic departure point, reported The National. The Norwegian Cruise Line has even offered a full fare refund if clients cancel their cruise because of job loss.

  • DAE Capital agrees aircraft funding with Export-Import Bank

    DAE Capital has agreed a $500m-plus financing deal for 10 aircraft with the US Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank).

  • Dana Gas starts Nile gas output

    The UAE’s Dana Gas has started output from its Al-Basant discovery in the Nile Delta concession, with initial production from its El-Wastani plant hitting 153 million cubic feet a day (cf/d) of gas and 5,400 barrels a day (b/d) of condensate and liquefied petroleum gas.

  • Das receives bids for Sea View resort in Dubai

    UAE developer Das Real Estate has received bids for a contract to build the Sea View Club Hotel & Apartments in Dubai.

  • Demand for plastics to fall in 2009

    Demand for plastics produced in the GCC will fall in 2009, but will increase the following year, according to a market forecast released on 15 April.

  • Dewa closes $2bn refinancing loan

    Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has finalised a $2.2bn loan to refinance some of its existing debt.

  • Doha Bank profits rise 20 per cent

    Qatar’s Doha Bank increased net profits 20 per cent in the first quarter of 2009 earning QR329.7m ($90.6m), compared with QR274m in the same period in 2008.

  • Doha extends airport tender closing date

    The tender closing date has been extended to 7 May for the contract to build the first part of the third phase of the $11bn New Doha International airport project.

  • Dolphin Energy refinancing oversubscribed

    Banks have finished submitting bids for the $3bn refinancing of Dolphin Energy, the company building the Dolphin gas pipeline connecting Qatar with the UAE and Oman.

  • Dolphin Energy signs $3bn refinancing deal

    Abu Dhabi-based Dolphin Energy, which delivers Qatari gas through pipelines to the UAE and Oman, has raised $3bn in debt refinancing.

  • Dolphin Energy to approach banks for bond underwriting

    Abu Dhabi’s Dolphin Energy will begin approaching banks to underwrite a bond of between $500m and $1bn in mid-April.

  • Downturn hits premium air travel market

    The decline in first and business class air travel in the Middle East increased in February, with an 11.6 per cent fall year-on-year.

  • Downturn hits regional air cargo industry

    The Middle East’s air cargo industry fell into deeper trouble during March, with volumes falling 7.6 per cent year-on-year.

  • Dragon Oil crude sales double

    Dubai-based oil and gas exploration company Dragon Oil more than doubled its sales of crude oil during the first quarter of 2009 compared with the same period a year before, even though prices were half what they were in 2008.

  • Dubai Airport $2bn concourse deal shelved

    Australia's Leighton Holdings has said that Al Habtoor Leighton group and its joint venture partners Murray and Roberts and Takenaka had come to a mutual agreement with the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation to withdraw from a $2bn contract to build the Dubai Airport Concourse 3. Al Habtoor Leighton and its partners have already completed Dubai Airport's terminal 3 and Concourse 2.

  • Dubai airport gets low visibility flying approval

    Dubai International airport has been given approval to operate in very low visibility conditions such as fog. The General Civil Aviation Authority and Dubai Civil Aviation Authority have approved the upgraded CATIIIB landing system, which means planes can operate in visibility conditions below 200 metres down to 50 metres. The first time a Middle East airport has been given this approval, it will help reduce passenger disruption during the months when fog is most common, airport officials sai

  • Dubai Airports traffic up by 2%

    Passenger traffic at the Dubai International Airport has crossed 9.5 million during the first quarter of this year, 2% higher than the previous period in 2008. January was the busiest month with 3.3 million passengers. Meanwhile, total freight has reached 425,172 tonnes compared to 423,291 tonnes in the first quarter of 2008.

  • Dubai and Abu Dhabi sign power cable deal with Ducab

    Dubai Electricity & Water Authority and Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority have signed an agreement with Dubai-based cable company Ducab to manufacture high voltage cables.

  • Dubai authority extends Lighthouse tender deadline

    The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Authority has extended until 30 April the deadline for bids for the contract to build the Lighthouse tower.

  • Dubai Civil Aviation set to receive government financing

    Dubai Civil Aviation (DCA) Authority may soon get a $350m equity injection from the government of Dubai to help repay a $1bn loan that the company is trying to refinance.

  • Dubai drivers can renew licences online

    Dubai has launched an online driving licence renewal service, a government official told Gulf News. Engineer Ali Al Jasem, Director of the Licensing Department at the Licensing Agency of the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), said that customers interested in renewing their licences online will have to do their eye tests first and send details using the e-services on the RTA's website. RTA has signed an agreement with Al Jaber Optical Centre and Al Yateem Optician for conducting eye t

  • Dubai gets more road works

    Dubai's RTA has announced more road improvement works will take place in Dubai following Dhs1.4bn endorsements of the designs of several road and bridge network projects. Road works include Phase 4 of Al Khail Road Improvement Project (Intersection of Al Khail and Umm Suqeim Roads), Al Wasl Road Improvement Project, and Trade Centre Roads Improvement Project.

  • Dubai hospital tender extended

    The Iranian Hospital in Dubai has extended the tender closing date for the estimated AED300m ($81m) contract to build an extension to the hospital to 5 May.

  • Dubai hotels see 15% rise in revenue in 2008

    Dubai hotels reported an 8% rise in the number of guests in 2008 compared to the previous year, according to figures released by the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing. Revenues were up 15.1% for the year, the DTCM said, as hotels and hotel apartments in the emirate accommodated 7,531,299 guests last year compared with 6,951,798 in 2007.

  • Dubai International adds new airlines

    Dubai International said it expects its passenger traffic to rise following the launch of services by two new airlines, the addition of a new destination and an increase in frequency of existing services, in the second quarter of 2009. The airport welcomed Toumai Air Tchad, a private airline that is also the national carrier of the Republic of Chad in Africa, on Wednesday (April 23), while the Hainan Airlines from China is scheduled to launch its service to Dubai from May 25. Jet Airways, whi

  • Dubai Investments Park expands substation network

    Dubai Investments Park (DIP) will house a total of 14 new substations to serve the business and residential development.

  • Dubai Islamic Banks profits fall 33 per cent

    Dubai Islamic Bank's profits fell 33 per cent in the first quarter of the year, dropping to AED370m ($101m) from AED555.5m in the same period in 2008.

  • Dubai launches online journey planner

    Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has launched "Wojhati" (my destination), an interactive website (wojhati.rta.ae) to help Dubai commuters plan their daily journey. Essa Abdul Rahman Al Dossari, CEO of PTA told Khaleej Times that the Dhs12m journey planner follows similar technology being used in Paris using different transport modes.

  • Dubai may host Concorde

    A Dubai-based consortium, advised by former British Airways (BA) Concorde crew, is planning to turn the last British Concorde into a tourist attraction, the Times has reported. A source close to the Dubai consortium said it would spend several million pounds restoring the aircraft's interior. 'It would be very well taken care of in Dubai,' the source said. BA admitted that it was considering removing Alpha Bravo from Heathrow, but refused to comment on its discussions with the Dubai consortiu

  • Dubai pays aviation authority debt

    The Dubai government will provide $365m of state funds to Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) to refinance the firm’s $1bn loan after it failed to raise the full amount from the bank market.

  • Dubai property prices fall 41 per cent

    House prices in Dubai fell an average of 41 per cent during the first quarter of 2009, taking them back to the same level as the second quarter of 2007, according to research by Colliers International.

  • Dubai property sector recovery likely in 2010

    Dubai’s real estate market is the worst hit in the region and it is the furthest from recovery, according to a survey of investors by US real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle.

  • Dubai refreshments cuts workforce

    Dubai Refreshments, the distributor of Pepsi Co products in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, cut 10% of its workforce last month, due to cost rises in 2008. Despite sales increases of 19%, the group's 2008 profits fell by 32%.

  • Dubai RTA to tighten minibus licensing

    Ali Abdullah Jassim, the director of licensing at the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), has said that transport chiefs are considering more stringent licensing requirements for minibus drivers after a string of serious accidents. 'Among the things being considered is the introduction of a 'certificate of professional competence',' Jassim said. This certificate, according to Jassim, will be required for 'any driver who intends to take up driving as a profession, especially if the vehi

  • Dubai taxi fare to be Dhs10 minimum

    Dubai's taxi fare will now cost a minimum of Dhs10, following recent complaints from drivers concerning short trips. The new fare structure is implemented on April 1 with the minimum starting fare of Dhs4, but if the meter reads less than Dhs10, passengers would have to pay Dhs10.

  • Dubai to allow parking fees to be paid via SMS

    Dubai motorists will be able to pay parking fees via their mobile phones beginning next month, Gulf News has reported. The new service was initially scheduled to be launched in September last year but it was delayed due to technical reasons. To use the system the motorist must locate the parking zone code registered in the payment machine in the paid parking zone, then send an SMS to the number 7275 (corresponding to the word PARK) including vehicle number plate, parking zone code, and the re

  • Dubai to have women-only buses

    From April 10, Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority will run a fleet of seven buses exclusively for women, with the number of allocated buses to increase according to demand. The route serviced will run from Deira to Satwa and cover hubs such as Karama and the Trade Centre.

  • Dubai to move ahead with road schemes

    Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority wants to move ahead with three road schemes in 2009.

  • Dubai World to remain independent

    Dubai World has issued a statement confirming that it will remain an independent organisation, and that it is not under the ownership of the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), a Dubai-owned sovereign fund.

  • Dubai’s Omniyat plans to expand

    Dubai-based developer Omniyat Properties is planning to build real estate projects outside Dubai.

  • Dubai's first double-decker roads to open soon

    Dubai's first two double-decker roads, which are being built in front of the Dubai Mall will be fully opened by the end of this month, reported Gulf News. The Dhs605m project aims to ease traffic congestion on Doha Street and ensure smooth traffic to Burj Dubai, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the Dubai Mall. The flyover consists of three lanes towards Jumeirah and five lanes in the direction of the Business Bay Crossing and Al Khail Road.

  • Dubal buys 19% stake in Brazilian mining co

    Brazil's mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (Vale) has announced that it has sold a 19% stake in its subsidiary Companhia de Alumina do Para to Dubai Aluminium Company Limited (Dubal). CAP's statement said that the deal is still pending awaiting the fulfillment of 'certain conditions.

  • Dubal posts 16% profit increase

    Dubai Aluminium Company (Dubal) announced at its annual general meeting that its profit grew 16% to Dhs2.21bn in 2008 compared to Dhs1.9bn in 2007, with a rise in production by 0.4% to 945,000 tonnes in 2008. Dubal sales figures reached Dhs9.12bn in 2008, as compared to Dhs8bn in 2007. During the year under review, production line 6B was established at a cost of Dhs478m and 40 new smelting cells were added.

  • Ducab inks deal with Dubai and Abu Dhabi

    Dubai-based cable company Ducab has inked a deal with Dubai Electricity & Water Authority and Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority to manufacture high voltage cables, reported MEED. The companies will set up a joint venture to be called Ducab-HV which will own a 22,000-square metre factory that will be built next to Ducab's existing facility in Jebel Ali.

  • Eastern Province Cement cuts production

    Saudi Arabian Eastern Province Cement has stopped production on one of its lines due to stockpiles of inventory, as the kingdom's export ban continues. The group had previously said that the ban was responsible for a decrease in Q1 profits of 37.5%.

  • Egypt evaluates bids for offshore gas blocks

    Egyptian Gas Holding Company (Egas) is assessing bids from international energy companies for its latest bid round but is reluctant to commit to a schedule for contract awards.

  • Egypt gold mining deal announced

    Centamin Egypt has issued a Letter of Intent to Australian firm Barminco for the beginning of underground mining activities at the Sukari gold project in Egypt. The award of the contractd will see the immediate mobilisation of personnel and equipment, with work expected to begin by July 1.

  • Egypt: Air conditioning

    Supply of air conditioning units. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Egypt: Animal vaccines

    Supply of animal vaccines. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Egypt: Apartment, office and hotel construction

    Construction and fit-out of the St Regis Cairo project comprising apartments, offices and a hotel. Closing date: 18 May 2009

  • Egypt: Automation and control system

    Implementation of an interactive automation and control system. Closing date: 2 June 2009

  • Egypt: Building equipping

    Equipping of a building including a serums factory. Closing date: 23 April 2009

  • Egypt: Fork-lift trucks

    Supply of 17 fork-lift trucks and 14 hydraulic trolleys. Closing date: 22 April 2009

  • Egypt: Glucose production line

    Design, supply and commissioning of a 200-tonne-a-day glucose production line. Closing date: 18 May 2009

  • Egypt: IT equipment

    Supply of IT equipment. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Egypt: Nuclear regulation consultancy services

    Provision of regulatory consultancy services for nuclear regulations at nuclear power plants. Closing date: 6 June 2009

  • Egypt: Power plant transformers

    Carrying out the electric transformers package for a thermal gas/oil-fired power plant project. Closing date: 11 June 2009

  • Egypt: Power transformers

    Design, manufacture, supply, transport and supervision of erection of two power transformers. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Egypt: School furniture

    Supply of school furniture. Closing date: 17 May 2009

  • Egypt: Serums and vaccines

    Supply of serums and vaccines. Closing date: 4 May 2009

  • Egypt: Steel pipelines

    Supply of steel pipelines. Closing date: 14 May 2009

  • Elaf Group to open Jeddah hotel

    Saudi Arabian hospitality firm, Elaf Group of Companies, has announced that it has won the contract to manage a five star Hotel at the Red Sea Mall in Jeddah. The hotel, Elaf Jeddah Red Sea Mall, will open its doors in July 2009, at a cost of SR72m.

  • Emal inks $200m GE Energy deal

    Emirates Aluminium (Emal) has awarded GE Energy a $200m deal to provide the smelter with services for its gas turbines. A joint statement by the two companies said that GE Energy will supply technology to Emal to help it reduce the environmental impact, improve efficiency of the complex, and meet regulatory requirements.

  • Emal inks raw materials deal

    Emirates Aluminium (Emal) has signed two raw materials supply contracts with suppliers from the Far East and Europe for its aluminium smelter complex at Taweelah, Meed magazine has reported. Meed said that the five-year contracts will result in US-based Koppers supplying liquid pitch and Italy's Fluorid delivering aluminium fluoride. The first shipments are planned for Q4 2009 and the smelter will be operational by April 2010.

  • Emirate set to issue tenders for Hudayriat bridge

    The UAE's Tourism & Development Investment Company (TDIC) is preparing to issue tender documents for the contract to build a road bridge connecting Abu Dhabi island with Hudayriat island.

  • Emirates adds more flights to Far East

    Emirates Airlines announced today that it is increasing its services to the Far East. The Dubai-based carrier said a double daily service to Kuala Lumpur will be added on May, while three additional weekly flights to Jakarta, extending the service to 10 weekly departures, will start the same day.

  • Emirates Airline to launch flights to Angola

    Emirates Airline has announced it will launch flights to Angola from 2 August.

  • Emirates launches Angola route

    Emirates Airways is to launch a service between Dubai and the Angolan capital Luanda three times a week beginning August 2. An Airbus A330-200will service the route with flights scheduled for Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Angola is Africa's second largest oil exporter after Nigeria.

  • Emirates NBD profits rise 5 per cent

    Emirates NBD reported a 5 per cent increase in profits during the first quarter of 2009 despite making AED462m ($126m) of writedowns.

  • Emirates NBD to convert $1bn bond to boost capital

    Emirates NBD will exchange $1bn of bonds maturing in 2016 for bonds that mature in 2012 in a bid to strengthen its regulatory capital ratios.

  • Emirates offers unpaid leave to cabin crew

    After reviewing its operational requirements, Emirates Airlines is giving its cabin crew staff the opportunity to apply for unpaid leave from a period of one month, up to a maximum of six months on a voluntary basis, starting from May 2009. An Emirates spokesperson said, 'In anticipation of our growing fleet, Emirates' recruitment efforts over the past 12 months have been highly successful in meeting our operational requirements. Combined with a sharp drop in cabin crew attrition, we now find

  • Emirates Steel plans major expansion

    The head of Emirates Steel Industries said the company plans to spend Dhs10bn ($2.72bn) to boost production capacity over the next five years. Hussein al-Nowais said the firm aims to hike its output to 3 million tons a year by 2011 and double that to 6 million tons a year by 2014. The company is building plants across Abu Dhabi and is seeking to acquire steel mills or a major stake in a competitor, he added.

  • Emirates still weighing options on damaged aircraft

    Emirates Airlines said it is still mulling its options with regard to repairing the A340-500 aircraft which had its tail struck against the runway while taking off from Melbourne last March. 'Repair options for the aircraft are under consideration. We are yet to take a final decision,' an Emirates spokesperson told Gulf News. Nobody was injured during the incident and the landing was completed safely.

  • Emirates targets Asian expansion in 2009

    Emirates Airline is continuing to target the Asian market, increasing its number of flights from Dubai to Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta.

  • Emirates to post 'modest' profit

    Maurice Flanagan, Executive Vice-Chairman and Group President of Emirates, told Emirates Business that the airline will show a 'modest' profit in the financial year which ended March 31, 2009. Emirates has also said that it would delay declaring its financial results by a couple of weeks past April 30. 'Finances this year were far more complex, with fuel costs going volatile and all that kind of thing,' Flanagan said. 'We will make a modest profit this year. It is an amazing achievement given

  • Emirates to revive ambitious regional plans

    The United Arab Emirates, the region's only federal state, plans to play a pivotal role in the Gulf and the wider Middle East but its leaders need to co-operate more closely to achieve this.

  • Equate Chemicals resumes Shuaiba production

    US/Kuwaiti Equate Chemicals has returned petrochemicals production at its Shuaiba complex in Kuwait to pre-April levels after it resumed feedstock supplies from a nearby refinery.

  • Equate cuts Shuaiba petrochemicals production

    US/Kuwaiti Equate Petrochemicals Company cut production at its Shuaiba petrochemicals complex in Kuwait because of related issues at a nearby Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) refinery.

  • Equity rally is not the end of the crisis says Deutsche Bank head

    The recent rally in equity markets does not signal the end of the global economic crisis, according to Henry Azzam, Middle East and North Africa chief executive for Deutsche Bank.

  • Ernst & Young wins Ghubrah plant consultancy

    Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) has awarded a OR990,000 ($2.6m) advisory contract for the planned Ghubrah independent water and power project (IWPP) to a consortium led by the UK-based Ernst & Young as technical adviser.

  • Etihad and Qantas ink new deal

    Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has forged a new deal with Qantas under which the Australian-based carrier will use Jetstar aircraft to take Etihad passengers to Australia's top holiday destinations. From Wednesday, Etihad passengers will be able to fly to Australia and not have to book tickets or carry their baggage between air terminals before boarding Jetstar flights to destinations not serviced by Qantas domestic flights. The new deal comes four weeks after Qantas and Etihad signed an arra

  • Etihad expands summer schedule

    Etihad Airways said it will expand its network this summer by 20%, operating a total of 900 weekly flights this season compared to 750 in the summer of last year. The Abu Dhabi-based airline also launched services to five new international destinations.

  • Etihad inks deal to reduce carbon footprint

    Etihad Airways has signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi's alternative energy initiative Masdar, to co-operate across a range of activities to reduce the airline's carbon footprint through sustainable and energy efficient measures. Masdar will support the development of carbon management initiatives to ensure Etihad's compliance with the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, which comes into effect in 2012 for the aviation industry.

  • Etihad launches Astana route

    UAE national carrier Etihad Airways, is to launch non-stop flights from May 7 to the Kazakhstani capital Astana from Abu Dhabi. The service will run once a week using an Airbus A319 aircraft. Astana will become the second destination in Kazakhstan served by Etihad following the launch in December 2008 of flights to Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city.

  • Etihad to launch Destination Management arm

    UAE national carrier Etihad Airways, is to launch its own destination management company (DMC). The new DMC aims to provide a diverse range of leisure and business activities for visitors to Abu Dhabi and the UAE. The carrier is currently in discussion with local tourism partners, with the new DMC set to support the development and enhancement of the capital's tourism infrastructure.

  • Etihad wins business class award

    Etihad Airways has won the award for having the best business class in the world following a global poll by 16 million air travellers. The national airline of the UAE also won the world's best business class catering award. The annual World Airline Awards, run by UK-based consultancy Skytrax, was conducted during a 10-month period among 97 different nationalities from around the world.

  • EU bans more airlines

    The European Union has added more carriers to its list of unsafe airlines that are banned from flying in the bloc. The EU has barred all airlines certified in the western African country of Benin, Kazakhstan's Air Company Kokshetau, ATMA Airlines, Berkut Air, East Wing, Sayat Air and Starline KZ, Thailand's One-Two-Go Airlines and Ukraine's Motor Sich Airlines. The ban already covers carriers from nations including Angola, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, R

  • ExxonMobil set to prequalify firms for Libyan seismic work

    ExxonMobil Libya will prequalify contractors for a seismic data programme off the coast of Libya due to begin in the fourth quarter of 2009.

  • Facebook to open up to developers

    According to a report Sunday in The Wall Street Journal, Facebook plans to announce it will open up user-contributed information to third-party developers at a developer event today. The move is seen to be a significant reversal for the social-networking site, which had previously retained tight control over the site and how developers interact with it.

  • FedEx confirms 1,000 job cuts

    FedEx Corporation spokesman Jesse Bunn has confirmed that the company has axed 1,000 jobs of 'salaried exempt' professionals and managers worldwide, including 500 in its US-based headquarters. Bunn described the decision as 'very difficult' and cited the worsening 'bad global condition'. The latest job cuts came after The Business Journal reported that FedEx said its Q3 profits fell 75%.

  • Fedex to trim fleet

    FedEx has announced plans to permanently remove 10 Airbus A310s and four Boeing MD10s from service by May 31, as part of a plan to reduce capacity amid the economic downturn. The courier company, which expects to take delivery of newer, more fuel-efficient aircrafts in fiscal year 2010, recently laid off 1,000 salaried employees as part of a $1bn cost-reduction plan that it announced last month.

  • Felix Airways launches flights to Sharjah

    Yemen's Felix Airways has launched regional flights from Aden and Al-Rayan airports to the UAE emirate of Sharjah. Currently, the carrier flies twice a week to Sharjah, but it would like to increase the number of flights to the destination in the near future, said Mohammed Abdullah Al-Erashah, executive director of Felix Airways.

  • Firms bid low for Kuwait oil contracts

    Kuwaiti firms have submitted the lowest bids for two major Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) maintenance contracts worth a total of KD66.8m ($228.9m).

  • Firms line up for Kuwait oil and gas station deal

    Sixteen international firms have been prequalified to bid for a major Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) contract to build a new oil and gas booster station in north Kuwait.

  • Firms line up for Oman depletion-compression work

    Firms will enter technical bids for construction works on a depletion-compression project at Saih Nihayda in Oman valued at $300-400m on 3 May.

  • Firms submit Jubail refinery pipeline bids

    Five contractors have submitted engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) bids for a $300m pipeline facilities package on Saudi Aramco’s 400,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Jubail export refinery.

  • Firms to line up for Awali gas exploration work

    Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) expects bids by the end of May for a licensing round covering deep gas exploration at Awali, the country’s largest gas field.

  • Firms withdraw from $1.3bn Dubai airport deal

    The joint venture of South Africa's Murray & Roberts, Japan's Takenaka and the local Al-Habtoor Engineering (HMRT) has pulled out of its $1.33bn contract to build Concourse 3 at Dubai International Airport.

  • Five Abu Dhabi hotels to award contracts

    Five major hotel projects in Abu Dhabi will make construction awards in the coming months, reported MEED. The hotels, which will have more than 1,700 rooms in total, are the Fairmont and Eastern Mangrove on Abu Dhabi island, the Al-Gurm development in the west of the emirate, and the St Regis resort and Hyatt hotel on Saadiyat island. The new projects will take the emirate a step closer to reaching its target of having 25,000 hotel rooms by 2012, up from 12,000 today.

  • Flydubai announces June takeoff

    Dubai's first budget airline, Flydubai, has announced its first service will take off in June starting with flights to Beirut on June 1 and Amman on June 2. The airline will become the fifth budget carrier to operate in the Gulf region, competing mainly with Air Arabia and Jazeera Airways. Flydubai will operate a fleet of Boeing aircrafts, each offering 189 economy class seats, from its base at Terminal 2 at Dubai International Airport.

  • FlyDubai launches with Beirut and Amman

    Seat prices on FlyDubai when it starts flying to Lebanon and Jordan will be from just Dhs250 each way, including taxes, as announced by HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman of FlyDubai. Phil Blizzard reports on the fledgling airline, which will commence flights on June 1st.

  • FlyDubai set to offer flights to Beirut and Amman

    FlyDubai, the UAE’s new low-cost carrier, will launch at the beginning of June with flights to Beirut and Amman.

  • Foster Wheeler wins $128m Iraqi refinery deal

    Iraq has formally signed a $128m design deal with the US' Foster Wheeler for a 300,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) oil refinery at Nasiriyah in the south of the country.

  • Fuel hedges curb Royal Jordanian's profit

    Royal Jordanian said its fuel hedging policy has led to unrealized losses of about $65.9m. The airline said it had hedged 30% of the fuel forecast for 2008 and 2009 at an average price of about $105 a barrel, resulting in a net loss after tax of $33m, after a fuel bill costing $410m was taken into account.

  • Gaza/ West Bank: Electricity utility management equipment

    Supply of equipment for an electricity utility management project. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Gaza/West Bank: Utility vehicles

    Supply of utility vehicles for an electric utility management project. Closing date: 4 June 2009

  • GCC to slip into recession in 2009, NBK report

    The GCC will slip into recession this year as government stimulus packages fail to stimulate private sector economic activity, according to a report by National Bank of Kuwait (NBK).

  • GE Energy signs $200m service deal with Emal

    The US’ GE Energy has signed a $200m agreement with Abu-Dhabi based Emirates Aluminium (Emal) to provide services for Emal's new aluminium smelter.

  • GE Energy to use service deals to survive downturn

    The US’ GE Energy Infrastructure’s Middle Eastern businesses will get through the downturn by completing service agreements on units it has already sold, according to the company’s president and chief executive officer John Krenicki.

  • GE inks $200m deal with Emal

    GE Energy today signed a $200m multi-year agreement with Emirates Aluminium (EMAL) as it nears completion of what will become the world's largest single-site aluminum smelter complex. The CSA will support EMAL's recent investment in GE gas turbines and the long-term productivity and efficiency of the turbines. Under the CSA, GE Energy will supply a wide range of services for the gas turbines, which are equipped with advanced emission control technologies to help EMAL reduce its carbon footpri

  • General Electric profit tumbles

    General Electric has reported that its total net income fell by 36% to $2.74bn in the first quarter of 2009, from $4.3bn during the same period a year earlier. The company said that in response to the global economic crisis it plans to cut costs by $5bn this year.

  • Global PC shipments down 7.1%

    Markets tracker IDC has said that global personal computers shipments fell by 7.1% in Q1, but the result was better than it expected and expects more stable production over the coming quarters, with growth returning around the end of the year. IDC estimated that the total global PC market in 2008 stood at $243bn.

  • Government unveils Jeddah transport masterplan

    The Saudi Transport Ministry has unveiled a new transport masterplan for Jeddah, including a SR21bn ($5.6bn) monorail. The plan, drawn up by Canada’s IBI Group and put forward by Transport Minister Jabara al-Seraisry, will also provide about 800 new buses and a tram network.

  • Gulf Air agrees $75m loan from Standard Chartered

    Gulf Air has agreed a $75m loan from the UK's Standard Chartered Bank to fund the airline’s development.

  • Gulf Air cancels lease

    Gulf Air plans to cancel its deal to lease four long-range Boeing 777 ER aircraft from Indian carrier Jet Airways after just six months, MEED has reported. Gulf Air agreed in February to take the aircraft on a wet-lease basis for six months, which includes the provision of pilots. The carrier originally planned to follow the initial six-month lease with a three-year dry lease, during which Gulf Air would pilot the planes itself.

  • Gulf Air to end lease agreement with Indian airline

    Gulf Air has confirmed a MEED report that it will ditch a long-term agreement to lease four Boeing 777 ER aircraft from Indian carrier Jet Airways.

  • Gulf at crossroads over nuclear power

    Nuclear power is regarded as part of the long-term solution to the Gulf energy challenge. But there may be a better way.

  • Gulf Extrusions boosts European market presence

    UAE-based Gulf Extrusions has announced the signing of several high-value deals with transport, tents and automotive manufacturers in the UK, France, Germany and Holland to supply high-quality aluminium profiles. 'The demand for aluminium profiles from Europe's industrial sector, specifically from transport and automotive companies, has been witnessing a steady increase in recent years, and Gulf Extrusions is keen on effectively capitalising on this,' said Robert Holtkamp, Director of Sales a

  • Gulf has room for budget hotels

    Tourism executives said the industry in the region needs more mid-scale and economy hotels. Robert O'Hanlon, the tourism, hospitality and leisure partner at Deloitte Middle East said there was enormous potential for the budget sector. 'As the market matures, the recognition that there's actually also a market for mid-range and budget products comes through,' said O'Hanlon. Christophe Landais, the managing director at Accor Hospitality agreed there was a strong need for more budget hotels in t

  • Gulf Hotels Group Q1 profit up 30%

    Gulf Hotels Group, the owner and operator of the Gulf Hotel, Gulf Convention and Exhibition Centre, Gulf Executive Residence and Gulf Brands International, said it posted a net profit of BD3.151 million ($8.359m) in the first quarter of this year, compared to BD2.429m achieved in the same period last year, an increase of 30%. Gross operating revenue for the period was BD7.973m compared to BD6.924m in Q1 last year, an increase of 15%.

  • Gulf must unite to combat pollution

    Red algae have invaded the coastline of the United Arab Emirates. It is time for the Gulf to co-ordinate environmental policies to protect the long-term health of the marine ecosystem.

  • Gulf Navigation profits drop 85 per cent

    The shipping group Gulf Navigation Holding has reported an 85 per cent drop in first-quarter profits.

  • Gulf projects 13 April 2009

    The MEED Projects index has again ground to a halt, with no growth in the value of projects planned or under way in the Gulf in the week to 13 April. Only Oman witnessed a 0.5 per cent increase in the size of its portfolio of projects.

  • Gulf projects 20 April 2009

    The value of projects remains stable across the Gulf, with most markets showing either small rises or no change at all compared to a week earlier. Only Iraq has shown a slight fall.

  • Gulf projects 27 April 2009

    The MEED Projects Index remained unchanged in the week ending 27 April. The value of projects planned or under way in Kuwait rose by 0.6 per cent, the highest rate in the region.

  • Gulf projects 30 March 2009

    The MEED Projects Index showed no change in the overall value of projects under way or planned in the week to 30 March.

  • Gulf projects 6 April 2009

    The MEED Projects index fell by 0.4 per cent in the week to 6 April.

  • Gulfsands boosts Syria oil reserve estimates

    Oil reserve estimates at the UK’s Gulfsands Block 26 oil and gas exploration concession in Syria have jumped 82 per cent after an independent contractor completed a study of the area.

  • Harvest Natural Resources wins Oman gas concession

    Houston-headquartered Harvest Natural Resources has signed an exploration and production sharing agreement (EPSA) for a newly-created concession in Oman.

  • Heritage Oil sells Oman subsidiary for $28m

    UK listed Heritage Oil has sold its subsidiary, Eagle Energy, to UAE-based RAK Petroleum’s Oman arm for $28m.

  • Hilton eyes expansion in Abu Dhabi

    Hilton Hotels is studying opportunities on Saadiyat Island as part of its plans to expand in Abu Dhabi, reported The National. 'We are at various stages on different locations in Abu Dhabi,' Elie Younes, the vice president of development for Hilton in the Middle East, told the daily,. 'Some are very advanced, some are initial talks, but we will definitely be announcing something this year, probably in the last quarter.'

  • Hilton halts new brand over espionage claims

    Hilton Hotels Corp has suspended several employees on its 'luxury and lifestyle' team pending an internal review of corporate espionage claims by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. Hilton has also halted development of its nascent Denizen Hotels brand, which Starwood claims was conceived using stolen documents related to the W Hotels brand.

  • Hochtief wins Barwa Commercial Avenue deal in Doha

    Germany's Hochtief has confirmed it won a construction works contract on the Barwa Commercial Avenue project in southern Doha.

  • Hotel occupancy drops in ME and Africa in March

    Hotel occupancy in the Middle East and Africa fell 11% in March, with Dubai and Egypt seeing the biggest declines, according to STR Global. Hotel occupancy in Dubai was down 15.8% in March while revenue per available room (revPAR) fell almost 41%. In Egypt, hotel occupancy rates fell almost 15% in March and revPAR was down over 18% compared to the same month of last year.

  • HP appoints new TSG head

    Santiago Cortés has been appointed managing director and vice president, Technology Solutions Group at HP Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa (MEMA). Cortés will lead the regional management team and succeeds the recently promoted Ken Willett.

  • HP inks deal with Mezzan Holding

    HP Middle East has announced that it has signed an agreement with the Kuwaiti Mezzan Holding Co to help the company in the automation and optimisation of its business structure through HP's Integrity solutions based on the latest Blade Servers. Mezzan will use the latest HP blade servers, BL860 and BL870, running the HPUX V3 integrated operating system and supporting SAP management software, which marks the first instance of SAP software on BL870 servers in the Middle East.

  • HSBC holds talks over selling British Arab Commercial Bank stake

    The UK’s HSBC confirmed it is in talks about selling its 49 per cent stake in British Arab Commercial Bank (BACB), a UK bank which specialises in trade and project finance in Arab countries.

  • Hyatt moving ahead with expansion plans

    Hyatt says its global expansion plans are still moving forward despite the economic downturn. Peter Fulton, managing director, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts - South West Asia International Operations, said this year will prove to be a significant milestone for Hyatt's growth plans in the Middle East, following the opening of Grand Hyatt Doha and the near-completion of Park Hyatt Jeddah, Saudi Arabia's premier luxury resort and spa, in September. Two additional UAE properties - Park Hyatt Abu Dhabi a

  • Hyundai orders down by 85%

    Hyundai Heavy Industries Co, the world's largest shipbuilder, said orders in the first two months of this year fell 85% due to the financial crisis. The Ulsan-based company said contracts, including those for marine engines and offshore units, dropped to $1.25bn (Dhs4.59bn) in January and February from $8.36bn in the same period a year earlier. The company also says it has received no orders for new ships since September.

  • IATA to fund audits for members

    The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said it will invest $8m in 2009 to fund IOSA (IATA Operational Safety Audit) audits for its 224 member airlines. Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's Director-General and CEO, said While announcing that all its member airlines were listed on the Iosa registry, Giovanni Bisignani, Iata's Director-General and CEO, said non-Iata members can receive an IOSA audit by contracting with one of the eight accredited audit organisations.

  • IBM sales dip more than expected

    IBM has reported that its first-quarter revenue fell to $21.71bn from $24.50bn a year earlier, compared with analysts' average forecast of $22.56bn, according to an estimate by Reuters. Net profit for the quarter dropped 1% to $2.30 billion, from $2.32 billion in the year-ago quarter.

  • IBM, Sun near deal

    International Business Machines (IBM) and Sun Microsystems are in the final stages of negotiations to merge the two groups. The companies are now discussing a deal in which IBM would pay $9.55 a share for Sun, about $1-a-share lower than Sun previously expected, according to the Wall Street Journal. The revised price, which values the company at about $7bn, would lower the amount IBM would have to pay by $750m.

  • IBM, Sun talks falter

    IBM and Sun Microsystems Inc broke off their $7bn acquisition talks after Sun terminated IBM's status as its exclusive negotiating partner, according to AP. A deal would likely face antitrust questions, and in addition to haggling over price, Sun has been pushing IBM to make certain commitments to seeing the deal through such scrutiny.

  • India plans to increase trade with Kuwait

    India hopes to increase bilateral trade with major oil supplier Kuwait as it targets $500bn infrastructure investments while growing at 8 per cent a year to 2030.

  • India targets fertiliser joint ventures in Kuwait

    India’s government is promoting the formation of new Kuwaiti/Indian fertiliser joint ventures to exploit Kuwait's cheap feedstocks and India's growing demand.

  • Industries Qatar restates quarterly profit

    Industries Qatar said it has restated its first-quarter profit to include a 'settlement of price difference' of QAR800 million ($219.8m). The company's net income was QAR1.4 million, or QAR2.57 a share, compared with QAR1.9 billion, or QAR3.5, in the year-earlier period.

  • Integrated Logistics to focus on Dubai

    Tee Tuan Sem, CEO of Malaysian Integrated Logistics Bhd said that his company will focus on its Dubai warehouse construction project and diversify into oil and gas, chemical storage business and cold room to mitigate the impact of the global economic crisis. The warehouse construction in Dubai began in Q4 2008 and is slated for completion by mid-2010 and will start operation in the first quarter of 2011.

  • Intel launches Xeon 5500

    Intel released the latest version of its business processor range, the Xeon 5500 today. The server platform is a complete redesign from the previous version and, the company says, includes a number of improvements. Intel claims the 45nanometre Xeon 5500 is 54% more power efficient than the 5400, can handle up to 144GB of memory across 18 modules and has the ability to dynamically increase its clock speed by up to 400MHz above its official rate on one or more of its four cores.

  • Intel Q1 profit falls to $647M

    Intel Corp, the world's largest chip maker, has reported first-quarter net income of $647m, down from $1.4bn in the same quarter last year. However, the company said it expects R&D spending in 2009 to reach $10.4bn to $10.6bn. 'We believe PC sales bottomed out during the first quarter and that the industry is returning to normal seasonal patterns,' chief executive officer Paul Otellini said in a news release.

  • Intel revamps chip rating system

    Intel has revamped its processor badging and rating system that rates chips from five stars (best performance in class) to one star (lowest performance), and while consumers are the main target, business systems will get new badging as well. Intel spokesman Bill Calder said the new system will help buyers distinguish between Centrino, Core, Celeron, Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad processors.

  • Intel rules out job cuts in Gulf

    Intel Corporation on Wednesday said it has no plans to cut jobs in the Middle East and Africa despite an expected slowdown in its business. Ferhad Patel, Intel's Regional Markets Development Director for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa said the global recession has had little impact on Intel's operations in the region. He added that the company plans to move forward with a regional investment programme that is in line with its global commitment to invest in local companies and encourage en

  • InterCon launches global 'free nights' incentive

    The InterContinental Hotel Group has launched an incentive for guests at any of its 4,100 properties whereby they will receive one night's free stay for every two spent at any Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Staybridge Suites or Candlewood Suites between May 4 and July 3.The stay can be redeemed at any hotel in any country up to a maximum of four free nights.

  • International Capital Trading approaches firms for Marasy project

    Abu Dhabi-based International Capital Trading (ICT) has invited companies to express interest in building works on the Marasy development in Abu Dhabi.

  • International Petroleum Investment lines up banks for bond deal

    Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) will appoint international banks to act as lead arrangers for its upcoming $5bn bond issue.

  • Interserve wins Ras Laffan contracts in Qatar

    UK services firm Interserve won two contracts worth a combined $19m for engineering and fabrication work at Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City.

  • Investment Dar blames credit crunch for earnings delay

    Kuwait’s Investment Dar has said that it has not yet released its financial results for 2008 because the financial crisis had forced it to take longer valuing its assets.

  • Investment in Bahrain rises to $41bn

    Figures released by the government of Bahrain show that investment capital, a measure of foreign and domestic investment in the country, has risen by 22 per cent, to BD15.3bn ($40.5bn), during 2008.

  • Iran awards $128m tanker deal to Daewoo

    National Iranian Oil Tanker Company (NIOTC) has awarded a $128m contract to South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering for the supply of a 'very large crude carrier', a ship weighing more than 160,000 tonnes.

  • Iran demands a decision from Shell on South Pars

    National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has given a new deadline of 20 May to the UK/Dutch Shell Group and Spain’s Repsol to make a decision on their involvement in the South Pars gas development.

  • Iran holds talks over supply routes for German troops in Afghanistan

    Iran is talking to German logistics groups about establishing new non-military supply routes into Afghanistan.

  • Iran is top buyer for wheat

    Iran has become the world's top buyer of wheat, Financial Times has reported. Drought has pushed rising concerns about food security among Middle East and North African countries, implicating the surge on cereal imports. Iran's total cost of wheat imports is estimated at between $2bn and $2.5bn.

  • Iran nears deals with firms on gas fields

    National Iranian Continental Shelf Oil Company (Nicsoc) will sign contracts for gas developments with two international firms within the next few months.

  • Iran plans $1.2bn rail link with Armenia

    Iran has reached an agreement with Armenia to establish a $1.2bn rail link between the two countries.

  • Iran signs petrochemicals deal with Turkey

    Iran’s state-run National Petrochemical Company (NPC) has signed a preliminary contract with Turkey’s Petrochemical Holding Corporation (Petkim) for the creation of a methanol and polyethylene facility in the Islamic republic.

  • Iran: Beneficiation plant power cables

    Supply of power cables. Closing date: 11 May 2009

  • Iran: Carbon ferro manganese

    Supply of high carbon ferro-manganese. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Drug detecting dogs

    Supply of 10 drug detecting dogs. Closing date: 13 April 2009

  • Iran: High carbon ferro-manganese

    Supply of high carbon ferro-manganese. Closing date: 14 April 2009

  • Iran: Hot oil

    Supply of hot oil. Closing date: 10 May 2009

  • Iran: HSP pitch

    Supply of high softening point (HSP) pitch. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Metallurgical coke

    Supply of metallurgical coke. New closing date: 20 April 2009

  • Iran: Penicillin and potassium clavulanate plant

    Establishment of a plant to manufacture penicillin G and potassium clavulanate. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Rails

    Supply of 2,000 tonnes of rails. Closing date: 2 May 2009

  • Iran: Recreation site design

    Design of a modern, 700-hectare recreation site. Closing date: 28 May 2009

  • Iran: Silicon metal

    Supply of silicon metal. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Teal chemicals

    Supply of teal chemicals. Closing date: 15 April 2009

  • Iran: Thermocouple extension cable

    Supply of thermocouple extension cable. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Truck cranes

    Supply of truck cranes with hydraulic telescoping booms. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Iran: Urban rail transport system EPC

    Completion, on an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) basis, of the Mashhad line 3 urban rail transport system. Closing date: 18 May 2009

  • Iran: Water treatment plant

    Carrying out, on a design, build and operate basis, the Ahwaz water treatment plant project. Closing date: 22 April 2009

  • Iraq delays bid date for Halfaya oil field facility

    Iraq's state-run Missan Oil Company has delayed the bid deadline for a contract to construct a 50,000-barrel-a-day (b/d) production facility at its Halfaya oil field in the south of the country.

  • Iraq holds talks over Al-Faw port design

    Iraq will begin talks with companies over the design and construction of a new €2.8bn ($3.6bn) port at Al-Faw in Basra province.

  • Iraq invites firms to bid for Nasiriyah oil field

    Iraq’s South Oil Company has invited contractors to compete for a project to drill 20 oil wells on its Nasiriyah oil field, west of Basra.

  • Iraq plans rail link to Syria

    Iraq says it hopes to open a rail route to Syria later in 2009, reopening an old trade route between the Gulf and southern Europe through Baghdad.

  • Iraq prepares final contract for oil round

    Iraq expects to meet its end of April deadline to produce a final contract for international oil companies (IOCs) competing in its first licensing round.

  • Iraq selects oil majors for second bid round

    Iraq’s Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate (PCLD) has selected nine oil majors to compete for its second bid round after 38 companies submitted qualification documents earlier in 2009.

  • Iraq to build Basra tourist complex

    Iraq will build a $107m tourist compound on the coast of the Shatt al-Arab waterway in Basra province.

  • Iraq to rebuild border crossing with Syria

    Iraq has employed an unnamed Ukrainian company to redevelop its border crossing into the Syrian town of Rabia at a cost of up to $5m.

  • Iraq: Aluminium

    Supply of aluminium. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Iraq: Boiler rehabilitation consultancy

    Provision of engineering consultancy services for the rehabilitation of a boiler at a thermal power plant. Closing date: 27 April 2009

  • Iraq: Boiler rehabilitation consultancy (closing date extension)

    Provision of engineering consultancy services for the rehabilitation of a boiler at a thermal power plant. New closing date: 4 May 2009

  • Iraq: Effluent water treatment unit

    Provision of an effluent water treatment unit. Closing date: 15 April 2009

  • Iraq: Events and hotel services

    Provision of events management and hotel accommodation services. Closing date: 21 April 2009

  • Iraq: Fibre optic cable equipment

    Supply of equipment for fibre optic cables. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Iraq: Fibre optic cables

    Supply of fibre optic cables. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Iraq: Fibre optic links

    Supply of fibre optical links. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Iraq: Fuel consumption measurement equipment

    Supply of fuel consumption measurement equipment. Closing date: 24 April 2009

  • Iraq: Gas power plant spares

    Supply of spare parts for a gas power plant. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Iraq: Gas turbine meters

    Supply of gas turbine meters. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Iraq: Lake, canal and ditch maintenance

    Carrying out maintenance of lakes, canals and ditches. New closing date: 22 April 2009

  • Iraq: Microwave network

    Installation of a microwave network for a transmission network. New closing date: 19 April 2009

  • Iraq: Mother and child hospital project

    Improvement of access to and quality of secondary level maternal, reproductive and paediatric healthcare as part of a project to rehabilitate a mother and child hospital. Closing date: 30 April 2009

  • Iraq: Oil processing plants

    Construction of two oil processing plants. Closing date: 24 April 2009

  • Iraq: Oil treatment chemicals

    Supply of chemicals for oil treatment. Closing date: 15 April 2009

  • Iraq: Oil well drilling

    Drilling of 45 oil wells. Closing date: 24 April 2009

  • Iraq: Power transformers

    Supply of power transformers. Closing date: 29 April 2009

  • Iraq: Refinery cooling water system

    Design and construction of a 10,000-cubic-metre-an-hour cooling water system at a refinery. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Iraq: Rehabilitation equipment

    Supply of rehabilitation equipment for an emergency disabilities project. Closing date: 10 June 2009

  • Iraq: Reverse osmosis unit

    Supply and commissioning of a reverse osmosis unit. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Iraq: Seed cleaners and generators

    Supply of seed cleaners and generators. Closing date: 18 May 2009

  • Iraq: Synthetic oil

    Supply of 11,000 litres of synthetic oil. Closing date: 28 April 2009

  • Iraq: Telecommunications construction project

    Construction of a telecommunications group. Closing date: 6 May 2009

  • Iraq: Telecoms hall rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of a hall for a telecommunications company. Closing date: 6 May 2009

  • Islamic Development Bank approves fund for Kenitra plant

    The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has approved a $196.7m 'instalment sale' for the Kenitra power plant project in Morocco.

  • Jabal Omar cancels deal with Jadwa to raise $3.3bn

    Saudi Arabia's Jabal Omar Development Company has terminated a contract with the local investment bank Jadwa Investment to raise SR12.2bn ($3.3bn) to finance the development of a real estate project in Mecca.

  • Japanese firms to build Saudi cable plant

    J-Power Systems Corp, a 50-50 joint venture between Sumitomo Electric Industries and Hitachi Cable, will join with Marubeni Corp to build a factory in Saudi Arabia to produce underwater power cables, according to Reuters. According to the report, the $30.8m factory is slated to go on stream in January 2011.

  • Jazeera may hedge 25% Q2 fuel

    Andrew Cowen, Jazeera airways' newly appointed CEO, told Emirates Business 24/7 that the airline has 25% of fuel hedging requirement in the second quarter of this year, and is currently looking to put a hedging strategy in place now that oil prices seem to be stabilising. Jazeera reported a 94% increase in 2008 net profit and 40% increase in operating revenues compared to a year earlier. The airline's chairman, Marwan Boodai, had said recently that Jazeera gained through not hedging fuel cont

  • Jet Airways adds new routes to Saudi

    India's Jet Airways said today it is launching daily flights from Riyadh and Jeddah to Mumbai, which will start operating on June 14. These cities will be Jet Airways' seventh and eighth destinations respectively, and Boeing 737-800 aircraft will be used on the routes. Jet Airways currently flies daily to Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi from several Indian cities.

  • Jet Airways launches daily Dubai service

    India's Jet Airways has launched its daily service to Dubai from Chennai, as well as a second service on the Mumbai-Dubai route. Passengers travelling on the new services can earn Double JPMiles and get a 25% discount on Jet Award tickets up to May 31. In addition to Dubai, Jet Airways also operates daily flights to Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha and Abu Dhabi in the Gulf from various Indian cities.

  • Jet to fly to Dubai

    Indian carrier Jet Airways has announced that it will launch a Chennai-Dubai route from April 23. The daily flight will be its third from India to Dubai, with Mumbai and Delhi services also operating.

  • Jordan airport makeover may be expanded

    The developer of Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan is asking the government to agree to a plan to expand the airport's overall landscape from 86,000 square metres to 100,000 square metres. The Airport International Group (AIG), which is responsible for the rehabilitation of existing facilities and the construction of the new terminal at the airport, said the expansion would delay the opening of the terminal by six months, but would not place any additional financial burdens on

  • Jordan Cement to hike supply in local market

    Jordan Lafarge Cement Factories Company said in a statement it plans to divert the cement quantities supposed to be exported via Aqaba to the domestic market to meet the local market needs. The company also plans to cut down its current periodic maintenance duration at its factories and increase its production to meet the increasing market demand.

  • Jordan retenders Zarqa wastewater plant

    Jordan’s Environment Ministry and the Zarqa Chamber of Industry have reissued a tender for the construction of the Zarqa Central industrial wastewater treatment plant.

  • Jordan: 3G mobile licence

    Provision of a licence for use of radio spectrum frequencies for third-generation (3G) mobile communications. Closing date: 26 May 2009

  • Jordan: Wastewater system consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services for the expansion of a wastewater system. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Jordan: Wastewater treatment plant

    Implementation of a central wastewater treatment plant. New closing date: 20 May 2009

  • Jordan: Water system consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services for the rehabilitation of a water system. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Jordan: Well consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services for the rehabilitation of wells. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Jordan’s banks still show growth says central bank head

    Jordan’s banking sector has continued to show growth of 3 to 4 per cent, despite the financial crisis, according to the country’s central bank governor Umayya Toukan.

  • Jordan's APC posts record profits in 2008

    Jordan's Arab Potash Company has reported that it posted posted a record net profit of $440m in 2008, twice the amount of profit when compared to the previous year and around four times higher than its capital. The company's chairman said the firm's production for 2008 reached a record high of two million tons.

  • Jordan's Arab Bank profits decrease 25 per cent

    Jordan’s Arab Bank has reported pre-tax profits for the first quarter of 2009 of $216m, a fall of 25.9 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

  • Jumeirah mulls Saudi expansion

    Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts has announced expansion plans into Saudi Arabia, The National has reported. The group's executive chairman Gerald Lawless has said negotiations are ongoing in Saudi. The kingdom is being highlighted by analysts as an important market for hoteliers and hotel investors.

  • June start for Iraq-Syria railway service

    Amer Abduljabbar, Iraq's minister of transportation has confirmed to Aswat al-Iraq news agency the June 1st launch of its railway that will link Iraq to Syria, allowing for freight transfer from southern Europe to the Gulf. Iraq has repaired the railway that connects Umm Qasr port to the Syrian border.

  • KASCO reports KD583,800 Q1 profit

    Aviation services company KASCO has reported a net profit of KD583,800 for the first quarter of 2009, 181% ahead of the forecasted KD207,700. Chairman and Managing Director Khalid Al-Duwaisan attributed the rise to minimising spending and signing a number of agreements with aviation companies to amend food menus.

  • Kharafi National secures Dubai airport deal

    Kuwait’s Kharafi National has won the estimated AED1.6bn ($435m) mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) works contract for Concourse 3 at Dubai International airport.

  • Khorfakkan achieves 220 moves per hour

    Gulftainer has announced that its Khorfakkan Container Terminal achieved productivity figures of 220 moves per hour on the recent call of the United Arab Shipping Company's 'Mayssan'. This new record-score on a UASC-vessel took place on Berth No.5, where KCT took delivery of two new gantry cranes a couple of weeks ago, bringing the total number at the terminal to 16, the company said.

  • Kingdom Holding reports 83 per cent drop in profits

    Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding reported an 83 per cent fall in profits for the first quarter of 2009 as a result of lower dividend income from its investment portfolio.

  • Kingdom Holding upgrades hotels

    Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal's Kingdom Holding group has said in a statement that it is upgrading and expanding its luxury hotels in Singapore and London, amid reports that the properties are up for sale. The group said it has obtained permission to expand its top end Raffles Singapore Hotel with up to 78 new rooms, while its Savoy Hotel in London is set to undergo a $175m renovation with plans to reopen the luxury property in late 2009.

  • Kingfisher eyes flights to Bahrain

    Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman of United Breweries Group, owner of Kingfisher Airlines, told the Gulf Daily News that the carrier would fly to Bahrain 'if there is enough economic justification,' otherwise, the company would wait until 'the economy gets better'. Currently, Kingfisher flies to 77 destinations, including a few international routes to London Heathrow Airport and to Colombo. Mallya added that he is also looking to Dubai as a possible destination.

  • Kubota to set up plant in Saudi

    Kubota Japanese Company (KJC) has inked an agreement with Tharawat Development Company to establish Kubota Saudi Arabia Company in Dammam. The SR225m facility will melt and cast heat-resistant alloys, crack pipelines, and steam in ethylene cracking units used in petrochemical factories. The new manufacturing company is set for production by mid-2010.

  • Kurdistan assigns DNO oil field stakes to rival firms

    The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has given minority stakes in three Kurdish oil fields operated by Norway’s DNO International to rival oil companies.

  • Kuwait allows foreign currency pricing on Subiya power plant

    Kuwait’s Electricity & Water Ministry has allowed contractors to offer prices for the Subiya power plant project in foreign currency, according to a source close to the scheme.

  • Kuwait awards $390m of drilling service contracts

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has awarded $390m of drilling service contracts as part of its plans to achieve 4 million barrels a day of oil production by 2020.

  • Kuwait awards $420m drilling contract

    Kuwait's Burgan Company for Well Drilling, Trading & Maintenance has been awarded a KD122.6m ($420.6m) contract for the supply of five drilling rigs in Kuwait.

  • Kuwait cabinet sets election date

    Kuwait's cabinet has decided to hold parliamentary elections on 16 May.

  • Kuwait cancels Al-Zour refinery pipeline tender

    Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) has cancelled the tender for a contract to build pipelines to its planned new refinery at al-Zour, according to contractors in the country.

  • Kuwait delays Al-Zour South deadline

    Kuwait’s Water & Electricity Ministry has delayed the deadline for bids on the design, supply and installation of a distillation unit at the Al-Zour South power and water plant until 28 April.

  • Kuwait delays compressor contract bid deadline

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has extended the deadline for bids for a contract to install three new compressor units by a month.

  • Kuwait delays deadline for water pipeline

    Kuwait’s Electricity & Water Ministry has pushed back the deadline for bids for the construction of potable water pipelines from 14 April to 2 June.

  • Kuwait delays Dharif water injection bid deadline

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has delayed the bid deadline for a contract to build a water injection pilot plant in west Kuwait.

  • Kuwait delays production facilities bid deadlines

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has further delayed the bid deadlines for two contracts covering major new production facilities in the north and west of the country.

  • Kuwait delays Subiya dredging tender

    Kuwait’s Electricity & Water Ministry has delayed the bid deadline for a contract to deepen a seawater outlet canal at the Subiya power and water distillation station to 19 May.

  • Kuwait estimates budget surplus is $20bn

    Kuwait had a budget surplus of KD6.09bn ($20.8bn) for the financial year 2008-09, according to an estimate from the country’s Finance Ministry.

  • Kuwait extends gas complex tender

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has delayed the bid deadline for the construction contract to build a $600-800m early production facilities gas processing complex in west Kuwait until May.

  • Kuwait issues tenders for airport work

    Kuwait’s General Directorate of Civil Aviation has invited prequalified companies to bid for a construction contract at Kuwait International Airport by 10 May.

  • Kuwait issues tenders for border post

    Kuwait’s Public Works Ministry has invited companies to bid by 17 May for the KD56m ($192m) contract to design and build a border post at Al-Abdaly on the border with Saudi Arabia.

  • Kuwait 'needs second airport'

    Dr Fadhil Safar, Kuwait's Minister of State for the Municipality and for Public Works said that the country needs a second airport in order to cope with the increasing number of travellers, which the government projects will rise steeply in the future. A second airport would turn Kuwait into an international financial and commercial centre, Safar said.

  • Kuwait Oil Company awards deal to Sinopec

    State-owned Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has awarded a KD117m ($402m) contract to Chinese oil firm China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) for the construction of five oil and gas rigs, although it is not clear how the deal was done.

  • Kuwait Oil Company to retender water injection project

    Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) will retender a $750m contract to build a water injection plant in the north of the country in July.

  • Kuwait restarts prequalification for ring road

    Kuwait's Public Works Ministry has invited international contractors to resubmit prequalification documents for the second phase of its first ring-road project.

  • Kuwait retenders Subiya power plant

    Kuwait’s Electricity & Water Ministry has issued a new tender for the Subiya power plant.

  • Kuwait stops trading in 36 listed companies

    The Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) has halted trading in 36 listed companies following their failure to disclose financial results for 2008 by the regulatory deadline of 31 March.

  • Kuwait tenders airport project

    Kuwait's General Directorate of Civil Aviation has invited nine local, regional and international prequalified companies to bid for infrastructure construction projects at Kuwait International Airport by May 10, Meed magazine has reported. The project covers runway works, aircraft hangars and approach roads leading to the airport.

  • Kuwait tenders education buildings

    The Public Works Ministry has invited prequalified companies to bid by 31 May for the KD75m ($205m) contract to build a new headquarters building for the Education Ministry.

  • Kuwait to issue $275m sovereign bond

    The Central Bank of Kuwait is to issue a KD80m ($275m) one-year sovereign bond on 8 April as part of its plans to absorb some of the excess liquidity in the Kuwaiti banking system.

  • Kuwait: Administration buildings and fire stations

    Provision of administration buildings and new fire stations. Closing date: 28 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Booster station construction

    Construction of a new booster station. Closing date: 16 August 2009

  • Kuwait: Building construction and maintenance

    Construction, completion and maintenance of a building. Closing date: 17 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Communications institute training equipment

    Supply of training devices for a communications and navigation institute. Closing date: 17 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Construction, civil and maintenance works

    Carrying out construction, civil and maintenance works. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Crude oil flow pipelines

    Construction of high-tension crude oil flow pipelines. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Desulphurisation catalyst materials

    Supply of catalyst materials for desulphurisation and metal removal. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Electrical works

    Carrying out electrical works at a social care house complex. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Electricity distribution network cables

    Supply of cables for electricity distribution networks. Closing date: 11 October 2009

  • Kuwait: Forces accommodation and meals

    Preparation and provision of meals and accommodation services for US forces. Closing date: 14 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Gas turbine station (rebid)

    Rebid for the design, supply, construction, operation and maintenance of a combined rotation gas turbine station. Closing date: 14 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Headquarters building (1)

    Construction, maintenance and furnishing of a headquarters building. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Headquarters building (2)

    Construction, maintenance and furnishing of a headquarters building. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Hospital construction and operation

    Construction, completion, furnishing, operation and maintenance of a hospital. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Lightening poles

    Replacement of lightening poles. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Liquid gas filling branch services

    Provision of services for a liquid gas filling branch. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Main transformer stations

    Supply of main transformer stations and a parallel reactor. Closing date: 2 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Metal plates factory materials

    Supply of raw materials and requirements for a metal plates factory. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Mosque

    Demolition and rebuilding of a mosque. Closing date: 10 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Mosque and ministries complex works

    Rehabilitation of a mosque and ministries complex. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Mosque carpets

    Supply, installation and removal of carpets for mosques. Closing date: 10 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Oil-filled ground and pilot cables

    Supply and extension of oil-filled ground cables and pilot cables. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Petroleum materials

    Supply of petroleum materials. Closing date: 26 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Police station project

    Construction, completion and maintenance of the Khaitan police station project. Closing date: 19 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Power and water distillation plant cut-outs

    Replacement of low-tension cut-outs at a power and water distillation plant. Closing date: 14 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Power cables

    Supply and installation of high-tension, 132kV power cables. Closing date: 20 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Rajam Khashman centre construction

    Construction, completion and maintenance of the Rajam Khashman centre. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Road and drainage works

    Construction, completion and maintenance of roads and rainwater drainages. Closing date: 9 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Road construction

    Construction, completion and maintenance of a road. Closing date: 14 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Road construction

    Construction, completion and maintenance of a road. Closing date: 14 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Road construction

    Construction, completion and maintenance of roads and services. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Road construction and sanitary services

    Construction of roads, overhead passages, sanitary and rainwater sewage services. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Road, drainage and sanitary construction works

    Construction of roads, rainwater drainages and sanitary services. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Road, drainage and sanitary construction works (1)

    Construction of roads, rainwater drainages and sanitary services. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Road, drainage and sanitary construction works (2)

    Construction of roads, rainwater drainages and sanitary services. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Roads, car parking and infrastructure service networks

    Construction of roads, car parking and infrastructure service networks. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Seawater outlet canal deepening

    Deepening of the seawater outlet canal at a power and water distillation station. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Sundry vehicle hire

    Hiring of large sundry vehicles. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Swimming pool complex

    Construction of a swimming pool complex. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Transformer substation maintenance (Ahmadi)

    Maintenance of a transformer substation. Closing date: 19 May 2009

  • Kuwait: Transformer substation maintenance (Mubarak al-Kabeer)

    Maintenance of a transformer substation. Closing date: 19 May 2009

  • Kuwait: University town construction

    Construction, completion and infrastructure works at a new university town. Closing date: 9 June 2009

  • Kuwait: Vocational training institute

    Construction and maintenance of a vocational training institute for girls. Closing date: 7 June 2009

  • Kuwait: XLPE ground and pilot cables

    Supply and extension of XLPE ground cables and pilot cables. Closing date: 24 May 2009

  • Kuwaiti firms bid low for Mina Ahmadi refinery deal

    Two Kuwaiti firms have submitted the lowest bids for a KD32.5m ($111.3m) gas maintenance contract tendered by state-owned Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC).

  • Kuwaiti ruler set to appoint prime minister

    Kuwait's ruler will appoint a new prime minister on 22 May, six days after National Assembly, or parliamentary, elections.

  • Kuwait's petrochemicals future depends on free gas supply

    Further development of the petrochemicals sector in Kuwait depends on the development of new gas supplies, according to a senior Kuwait Petroleum Company (KPC) executive.

  • Lebanon: Old city construction works

    Carrying out construction works at the Citadelle St Gilles in Tripoli Old City. Closing date: 19 May 2009

  • Lebanon: Port area development

    Carrying out phase 2 works in the port area of Tyre old city for a cultural heritage and urban development project. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Lebanon: Public buildings construction

    Construction of public buildings in six municipalities in the south. Closing date: 12 June 2009

  • LG Q1 profit beats estimates

    LG Electronics' earnings in the first quarter exceeded analyst estimates, reported Bloomberg. First-quarter operating profit fell 25% to 455.6 billion won ($338m), including revenue from overseas affiliates. That compares with the 287.7 billion won median estimate of 20 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The company has forecast higher sales in the current period on increased shipments of handsets and televisions. The company's sales rose 15% to 12.85 trillion won, while first-quarter operating

  • Libya: Air conditioning system

    Replacement of an air conditioning system. Closing date: 4 May 2009

  • Libya: Civil works

    Carrying out civil works comprising the construction of rig locations, camp sites and access roads. Closing date: not stated

  • Libya: Drilling and fishing tools (area 64)

    Provision of drilling and fishing tools. Closing date: 22 June 2009

  • Libya: Drilling fluid, solids control services

    Provision of drilling fluid, and solids control equipment and services. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Libya: Environmental impact assessment services

    Provision of environmental impact assessment services for drilling operations. Closing date: 27 April 2009

  • Libya: Exploration well coring services

    Provision of coring services for desert exploration wells. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Libya: Exploration well coring services (039)

    Provision of coring services for deepwater exploration wells. Closing date: 22 May 2009

  • Libya: Exploration well steel casing

    Supply of seamless steel casing for onshore exploration wells. Closing date: 26 April 2009

  • Libya: Offshore wireline logging services (area 19)

    Provision of wireline logging services in an offshore area. Closing date: 20 May 2009

  • Libya: Oil field substation handling and cleaning

    Provision of handling and cleaning services in main and substations in an oil field. Closing date: 26 April 2009

  • Libya: Onshore catering and cleaning services

    Provision of catering and cleaning services for onshore fields. Closing date: 26 April 2009

  • Libya: Seismic data acquisition

    Provision of 2D and 3D seismic data acquisition services. Closing date: 6 May 2009

  • Libya: Seismic survey services

    Provision of 2D offshore seismic data acquisition services. Closing date: 23 April 2009

  • Libya: Transmission line maintenance

    Maintenance of high-voltage power transmission lines in contract area C. Closing date: 10 May 2009

  • Libya: Water treatment

    Carrying out the remedial treatment of water for fire-fighting and cathodic protection wells. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Libya: Water well and conductor hole drilling

    Carrying out a water well and conductor hole drilling project. Closing date: not stated

  • Limitless receives Jebel Ali bids

    UAE developer Limitless has received bids for a contract to design and build a mass transit system at the Downtown Jebel Ali development in Dubai, Meed magazine has reported. The company is now 'assessing initial proposals'. The automated light railway system will be made up of four transit lines, each of which will serve one of Downtown Jebel Ali's four zones.

  • Maaden boosts value of WorleyParsons phosphate deal

    Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) has nearly doubled the value of a management consultancy (PMC) deal to Australia’s WorleyParsons on its phosphate project at Ras al-Zour after extending the scope of the contract.

  • Major hotel companies eye Abu Dhabi

    Major international hotel operators such as Ritz-Carlton, Hilton Hotels and InterContinental are looking to expand in Abu Dhabi to capitalize on the sharp rise in tourism that is projected for the capital, reported The National. Abu Dhabi is drawing interest from hotel companies because of its acute lack of accommodation and the billions of dollars that government is investing to boost tourism, say analysts.

  • Malta 'interested' in Etihad, Air Arabia routes

    Malta's Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Dr Mario de Marco said that Malta's government is open to the idea of more UAE-based airlines flying to the island. De Marco said that Malta had not yet contacted Etihad Airways and Air Arabia but would be interested in talking to them. Emirates is currently the only carrier offering a daily service to Malta. Etihad and Air Arabia are aggressively looking to expand their networks in the Middle East and Europe.

  • Masdar invites firms to prequalify for headquarters deal

    Abu Dhabi’s Masdar has invited selected contractors to prequalify for a contract to build its headquarters building in Masdar City.

  • Mashreq launches bank in Egypt

    Dubai’s Mashreqbank has launched a retail institution in Egypt with 10 branches and a capital outlay of£E560m ($99.4m).

  • MCM Group wins Ras al-Khaimah hospital deal

    Abu Dhabi-based MCM Group has won a AED800m ($217m) contract to build the Sheikh Khalifa specialist hospital in the emirate of Ras al-Khaimah.

  • Mediterranean union launches $1.3bn infrastructure fund

    The Union for the Mediterranean launched a new regional infrastructure development fund at its meeting in Alexandria on 30 April.

  • Microsoft corners netbook market in Gulf

    The netbook market share of Microsoft's operating system (OS) in the Gulf has jumped from 68% to 97% in the last 12 months, according to Wilson Xavier, Business Group Lead - Windows Client, Microsoft Gulf. He told Gulf News that Microsoft's success in the netbook market has come at the expense of the open source Linux Operating System. He said many people who bought Linux are returning it because they want a netbook computing environment that mirrors that of full-size PCs. When they realise t

  • Microsoft Gulf inks deal with ITE Distribution

    ITE Distribution has signed a deal with Microsoft Gulf to be an authorized distributor for Microsoft Hardware line-up and Mac Office in the region. Dubai-based ITE will be responsible for distributing in the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain.

  • Microsoft names Windows 7 RC1 download date

    Microsoft said that a stable and completed code for Windows 7 will be posted to members of Microsoft's Developer Network and TechNet for download on April 30. RC1 will be made generally available on May 5. This is expected to be the last code cut before Windows 7 is delivered as final product, unless major bugs or faults are uncovered.

  • Microsoft researching life after Windows

    Microsoft is conducting a research project looking at life after Windows. Code-named Midori, it is investigating the use of a cut-down operating system that is not tied to a single computer. The BBC reports that Midori is being developed because Windows cannot cope with the changing pace of technology and how it is used by people, particularly as they expect their devices and data to be more mobile. Microsoft issued a statement saying that "Midori is one of many incubation projects underway"

  • Microsoft to pay $388m in patent dispute

    Microsoft was ordered by a federal Rhode Island jury to pay $388m in damages for infringing on an anti-piracy patent owned by Uniloc, a company that makes software that ensures licensing rights and security. The jury found that Windows XP, Office XP, and Windows Server 2003 infringed on a Uniloc patent. Microsoft said that it will appeal.

  • Microsoft, Maktoum Fondation ink MoU

    The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding to partner with the Microsoft's BizSpark programme to provide start-ups with better access to advanced technologies. The partnership has set up six training centres for young business leaders in six countries, and it expects to be operating 22 of the facilities by 2010. 'The Foundation will work closely with Microsoft to help these businesses use technology to achieve success through providing educational progr

  • Mideast airlines post 4.7% growth in March

    The Middle East was the only region in the world where airlines experienced growth in passengers in the month of March this year, according to the International Air Transport Association. While the global airline industry took an 11.1% hit in passenger numbers in March compared to the same period a year earlier, Middle East carriers experienced 4.7% growth. in the month. 'This is an improvement from the 0.4 per cent growth in February, and represented an expansion of market share. But this

  • Missan Oil seeks interest in Iraqi drilling deal

    Iraq’s state-run Missan Oil Company has issued a tender to foreign contractors to boost production on three southern oil fields.

  • Mizin consolidates Remraam construction contracts

    Mizin has consolidated the construction works on its Remraam development in Dubailand.

  • Moody’s downgrades Dubai firms

    Moody’s has downgraded two Dubai government-backed companies and confirmed its ratings for four others. The outlook on all the ratings is negative.

  • More delays for Al Maktoum International Airport

    Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths said that Dubai's new airport may have its first flight pushed back further than planned, and that officials will review the $33bn facility opening date in the coming weeks. 'The question we're now asking is: When is the right time to open the new airport?' Griffiths told the Associated Press.

  • Moroccan airports to get African Development Bank loan

    Morocco will get a €240m ($310m) loan from the African Development Bank (ADB) to assist in the redevelopment of the country’s airport infrastructure.

  • Morocco: Gas turbine power station project

    Design and supply of equipment for a gas turbine power station. New closing date: 15 May 2009

  • Morocco: Overhead power lines

    Construction of overhead power lines. Closing date: 24 June 2009

  • Morocco: Power line

    Construction of a 60kV power line. Closing date: 3 June 2009

  • Morocco: Power transformer station

    Construction of a 60/22kV power transformer station. Closing date: 3 June 2009

  • Morocco: Village electrification (Azilal)

    Electrification of villages. Closing date: 13 May 2009

  • Mott MacDonald bids low for Dubai power deal

    Mott MacDonald is the low bidder for the contract to provide consultancy services for a load forecast and system masterplan for Dubai Electricity & Water Authority.

  • Mubadala appoints banks for bond sale

    Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company has appointed three international banks to run a bond sale on behalf of the company.

  • Mubadala inks deal with Kor Hotel Management

    Mubadala Real Estate and Hospitality has signed up Kor Hotel Management, owner of Viceroy Hotels, Resorts and Residences, to operate a five-star hotel on Sowwah Island, the core of Abu Dhabi's new Central Business District. The new hotel will be adjacent to Sowwah Square and planned to offer up to 250 hotel guest rooms and suites, as well as branded residences, in addition to health and recreation and food and beverage facilities.

  • Mubadala seeks financing for Zayed University

    Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company is approaching banks to finance $900m of debt for the Zayed University project in Abu Dhabi.

  • Muharraq wastewater plant tender due

    The Bahraini government has informed prequalified bidders on its planned Muharraq wastewater treatment plant that it will issue a request for proposals by the end of April at the earliest.

  • Muscat bails out Oman Air

    Oman Air has received a $650m government bail-out after announcing a drop in profits in 2008. At an extraordinary general meeting on 12 April, the state carrier revealed Muscat increased its working capital to RO300m ($780m) from its previous level of RO50m.

  • Nacap-Suedrohrbau wins Aramco pipeline deal

    Saudi Aramco has awarded a deal to Dutch contractor Nacap-Suedrohrbau for a pipeline running from the Ras Tanura refinery to Riyadh via Dhahran and Al-Hasa in the Eastern Province.

  • Nakheel invests in Koh Samui resort

    Nakheel has partnered with Thailand's Amburaya Hotels and Resorts investing in Thailand's Koh Samui Island to launch an integrated resort development of 17 private residences and a 75-key all-villa hotel. Targeting the upmarket, W Koh Samui Retreat & Residences will be one of the first W-branded residential projects in Asia set for completion in 2010.

  • Nakheel approaches firms for Port Rashid work

    Local developer Nakheel has invited selected contractors to express interest in a contract to design and build a cruise terminal at its Port Rashid development in Dubai.

  • Nakheel cancels Village Centre contract with Samsung

    Local developer Nakheel has cancelled its estimated $1.1bn contract with South Korea’s Samsung Corporation to build the Village Centre development on the Palm Jumeirah.

  • Nakheel invites firms to pursue Port Rashid work

    Nakheel has invited selected contractors to express interest in a contract to design and build a cruise terminal on the existing quay at Port Rashid in Dubai, which will be capable of handling up to four ships at the same time, MEED has reported. Tenders for the project are planned to be issued in early May with contractors submitting bids on 24 May.

  • Nakheel One and Only opens in South Africa

    Nakheel Hotels has opened the first One and Only resort in South Africa, in Cape Town. The 137 room hotel is built around two artificial islands and includes restaurants operated by chefs Gordon Ramsay and Nobu Matsuhisa. Nakheel Hotels' said the hotel builds on its relationship with Kerzner International, owners and operators of the One and Only and Atlantis in Dubai.

  • Nakheel terminates Jumeirah Golf Estates deal

    A consortium of France’s Degremont and Belgium’s Besix has received a letter from Nakheel terminating their contract to design and build the estimated AED3bn ($817m) sewage treatment plant at Jumeirah Golf Estates.

  • National Bank of Abu Dhabi profits down 12 per cent

    National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has reported first-quarter profits of AED770m ($209.7m), a drop of 12 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

  • National Bank of Kuwait profits fall 22.6 per cent

    National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) made first quarter profits of KD63.5m ($216.9m), a 22.6 drop compared with the same period in 2008 when the bank made profits of KD82m.

  • National Commercial Bank profits drop 41 per cent

    Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank (NCB) has reported a 41 per cent fall in profits for the first quarter of 2009, following writedowns for bad loans and investments.

  • National Industries posts $966.4m loss

    Kuwait's biggest construction materials firm, National Industries Group Holding, an affiliate of the family-owned Kharafi Group, said it posted a loss of KD281.96 million ($966.4m) in 2008 and planned to pay no dividend. Losses per share in 2008 were 224 fils compared with a profit of 167 fils per share in 2007. The company gave no explanation for the loss.

  • New Egypt airline to launch this year

    AlMasria Universal Airlines has announced plans to start Egypt's first private commercial airline this year, Reuters has reported. The company's president, Hassan Aziz, said the carrier would fly to 20 destinations in the Middle East and Europe with an Airbus fleet that will grow to 10 aircraft in the next five years. It expects to launch its first commercial flights in June.

  • NK Trucks signs deal with Iraq to renovate railway

    The Iraqi Transport Ministry has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Austrian group NK Trucks to renovate the country's railway rolling stock.

  • No recovery before 2011, says BA

    British Airways Chief Executive Willie Walsh has said the airline is unlikely to experience a rebound in passenger traffic until 2011, as recession drags on. He told German magazine WirtschaftsWoche that most airlines had almost depleted their financial reserves due to the high price of jet fuel in the past.

  • Nortel wins Algerian rail communications contract

    Algeria has selected the US telecoms group Nortel to deploy a wireless mobile communications system on a new railway line in the country.

  • Northbridge wins Yemen zinc deal

    RDS (Technical), a subsidiary of Northbridge Middle East, has won a contract worth at least $2.9m to rent out generators, transformers and associated equipment as well as a maintenance agreement to the Jabali Zinc Project in Yemen. The contract, due to start in September 2009, is for an initial period of one year.

  • Nurizon wins Saudi police deal

    Homeland Security solutions provider Nurizon has been awarded a licence of approval for their in-vehicle mobile video recording and CCTV systems for the Saudi Arabian Security Forces, and emergency services. Nurizon uses Digital Ally's as exclusive provider.

  • Occidental increases regional oil production

    The US’ Occidental Petroleum increased its oil production in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) by 5 per cent during the first quarter of 2009.

  • Oil price increases to $51 a barrel

    Crude oil futures contracts for May, the earliest available, were trading above $51 a barrel in the US and Europe on Thursday 30 April, after trading below $46 a barrel in the US the week before.

  • Oil price peak not due to manipulation, claims Total

    The high oil prices in July 2008 were not due to manipulation, but as a result of complex market dynamics said Pierre Barbi, a senior director at French international oil company Total.

  • Oil price stabilises

    The US’ benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil contract fell below $46 a barrel this week as negative economic data and ongoing fears over the level of US stocks pushed prices down.

  • Oil prices stabilise despite lower demand forecast

    The week ended 16 April found May crude oil contracts, the earliest available for the US’ benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI), trading at $50 a barrel after dips earlier in the week after several major reports downgraded their crude oil demand forecasts for 2009.

  • Oil rises to $51 after positive economic sentiment

    Crude oil contracts for May delivery, the earliest available, were trading at about $51 a barrel in Europe and the US on the afternoon of 2 April, having fallen as low as $47 a barrel in both regions, buoyed late in the week by positive economic sentiment.

  • Oman Air gets $650m bailout

    Oman Air said it has received a $650m government bailout that will enable it to expand during the current difficult trading environment, MEED has reported. At an extraordinary general meeting on 12 April, the carrier revealed that Muscat has increased the company's working capital to RO300m ($780m) from its previous level of RO50m. The airline recorded a loss of RO42m in 2008 compared with a RO4m profit in 2007. Company officials blamed high fuel costs during the first half of the year, coupl

  • Oman Cement Q1 profit up 14p%

    Oman Cement said in a statement its net income in the three months to March 31 rose 14.2% to RO4.66 million ($12.1m) compared to the year earlier period. The company also reported a rise in sales of 55.2% to RO18.2 million in the first quarter. In an early regulatory filing, the firm had said pre-tax profit rose 15.1% to RO5.179 million.

  • Oman delays tender date for majlis contract

    Oman has extended the closing date for tenders for a contract to build the estimated OR70m ($191m) majlis (parliament) building in Muscat until 27 April.

  • Oman delays tenders for Salalah port work

    The Omani government has delayed tenders for the construction of three new berths at the Port of Salalah until the summer as consultants on the project revise the masterplan.

  • Oman issues advisory tenders for Duqm power project

    The Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) has retendered the advisory services for its planned Duqm independent water and power project (IWPP).

  • Oman issues legal advisory tender for Duqm plant

    Oman's Tender Board issued a third tender for the planned Duqm independent water and power project (IWPP) on 29 April.

  • Oman issues solar consultancy tender

    Oman’s Public Authority for Electricity & Water (PAEW) has issued a tender for consultants for the sultanate's first large-scale solar power plant.

  • Oman issues substation tenders

    Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC) has issued tenders for two major substation contracts in the sultanate.

  • Oman ups oil output to plug Opec export gap

    Oman’s oil and gas production and exports rose year-on-year in the first two months of 2009 as neighbouring states cut their own production in line with Opec quotas.

  • Oman: Diesel generator

    Engineering, procurement and construction of a diesel generator. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Grid station and transmission line

    Construction of a grid station and transmission line. Closing date: 22 June 2009

  • Oman: Grid substation and transmission line

    Construction of a grid substation and transmission line. Closing date: 22 June 2009

  • Oman: Health centre (Khuwair)

    Construction of a health centre. Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: Health centre (Seeb)

    Construction of a health centre. Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: Hospital

    Implementation of a proposed hospital. Closing date: 6 July 2009

  • Oman: Industrial estate expansion

    Expansion of an industrial estate. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: IWPP financial advisory services

    Provision of financial advisory services for an independent water and power project (IWPP). Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: IWPP legal advisory services

    Provision of legal advisory services for an independent water and power project (IWPP). Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: IWPP technical advisory services

    Provision of technical advisory services for an independent water and power project (IWPP). Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: Methanol handling geotechnical investigations

    Carrying out geotechnical investigations for proposed methanol handling and general cargo berths at a port. Closing date: 18 May 2009

  • Oman: Port development consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services for the development of a port. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Power generation

    Provision of additional power generation. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Power lines

    Construction of 33kV power feeder lines. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Public park

    Construction of a public park. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Road construction

    Design and construction of track roads. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Roads, drainage and wastewater treatment works

    Construction of internal roads, surface water drainage, sewerage collection networks and a wastewater treatment plant. Closing date: 22 June 2009

  • Oman: Seawater chlorination system works

    Carrying out seawater chlorination system works at a power and desalination plant. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Solar power plant

    Implementation of a large-scale solar power plant. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Oman: Store facility construction

    Construction of a store facility. Closing date: 29 June 2009

  • Oman: Substation construction (Airport Heights 3)

    Construction of the Airport Heights 3 primary substation. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Substation construction (Al-Khoudh)

    Construction of the Al-Khoudh primary substation. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Substation construction (Al-Muna)

    Construction of the Al-Muna primary substation. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Substation construction (Jibroo)

    Construction of the Jibroo primary substation. Closing date: 15 June 2009

  • Oman: Substation upgrade (2)

    Upgrading of a substation. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Oman: Transformer upgrade

    Upgrading of transformers at a main grid station. Closing date: 22 June 2009

  • Oman: Wastewater project

    Carrying out a wastewater project. Closing date: 1 June 2009

  • Oman: Water transmission and distribution network O&M

    Operation and maintenance (O&M) of a water transmission and distribution network. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Opec holds majority of oil overcapacity

    Global oil production is about 10 per cent overcapacity, with Opec members holding the vast majority of unused capacity, according to a senior industry analyst.

  • Opec revises oil demand down

    Opec has lowered its forecast for oil demand by a further 400,000 barrels a day (b/d) as the global recession continues.

  • Opening of Palm Jumeirah monorail delayed

    The opening of the monorail on Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, which was slated for April 1, has been delayed to later this year, according to a Nakheel spokesperson. The new system, when operational, will carry passengers daily between Gateway Station at the trunk of The Palm and the Atlantis' Aquaventure Station on the crescent with plans to ultimately connect to the Dubai Metro following the introduction of RTA's Al Sufouh tramline, with direct links to Dubai Airport and other major transport hubs

  • Oracle buys Sun Microsystems

    Software developer Oracle is to buy Sun Microsystems for $7.4bn, including cash and debt. Oracle agreed to pay $9.50 a share for Sun, a 42% above their closing price on Friday. Oracle expects Sun to add $1.5bn to its operating profit. Sun has been struggling, posting a loss in three of its last four quarters and earlier this month acquisition talks with IBM collapsed. The acquisition is a good fit for Oracle. Its Fusion Middleware is based on Java and the Solaris operating system is the main

  • Packard Bell launches new netbooks

    Packard Bell has launched in the Middle East new new versions of netbooks ('dot m' and 'dot s') and notebooks, EasyNote Butterfly and the fresh new EasyNote TR series. The new range of Packard Bell notebooks feature LED panels, 16:9 aspect ratio, Dolby Sound Room and red capacitive buttons for power saving, backup and touchpad lock.

  • Palestinian economy grows 2 per cent

    The Palestinian economy grew 2.3 per cent in 2008, despite a sharp downturn during the final quarter.

  • Pars Petro Zagros wins Iran rigs contract

    Iran's Pars Petro Zagros Engineering & Services (PPZ) has won a two-year contract to manage the drilling and operations of 10 rigs for the Central Iranian Oil Fields Company (CIOFC).

  • Petro-Rabigh reports loss of $7.7m

    Petro-Rabigh, a joint venture of Saudi Aramco and Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Company, reported a loss of SR28.7m ($7.7m) for the first quarter of 2009, a 65 per cent improvement on the loss it made during the same period in 2008.

  • Petro-Rabigh starts up $10bn petrochemicals cracker

    Saudi/Japanese joint venture Petro-Rabigh has successfully started an ethane cracker which is key to its $10bn new petrochemicals complex at Rabigh in Saudi Arabia.

  • Phase I of Abu Dhabi's rail network to be ready in 2015

    According to the Abu Dhabi's Surface Transport Master Plan, the city will have its trams and metro systems ready for use in 2015. The plan includes a 130-km metro network, covering the Capital City District, Abu Dhabi International Airport and other suburbs as well as a 340-km tramway network, new bus services, waterway transport of ferries and water taxis, a high speed rail network connecting Abu Dhabi with other emirates and Saudi border and a 600-km freight railway line.

  • Pirates free ship held for five months

    Somali pirates today released a Philippine tanker and its 23 crew which were siezed five months ago in the Gulf of Aden. So far it is unclear whether the pirates were paid a ransom for freeing the MT Stolt Strength. The ship was hijacked on November 10 as it sailed from Senegal to India.

  • Pivot wins deal to build Abu Dhabi villas

    Abu Dhabi-based International Capital Trading (ICT) has awarded a AED260m ($71m) villa contract to the local Pivot Engineering and General Contracting Company.

  • Planet Travel signs as Uzbekistan GSA

    Planet Travel & Tours has recently won a deal as General Sales Agent for Uzbekistan Airways in the UAE. The agency is planning to launch a standalone brochure on Uzbekistan during the Arabian Travel Market as Uzbekistan Airways mulls opening more flights between Uzbekistan and the UAE.

  • Prequalification starts for Abu Dhabi oil company headquarters

    Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has invited selected companies to prequalify for the contract to build its new corporate headquarters on Abu Dhabi corniche.

  • Qatar awards risk assessment technology deal

    Qatar Petroleum (QP) has awarded a technology contract to the UK's RAP International for the supply of an electronic risk assessment system.

  • Qatar cancels onboard lounges

    Qatar Airways is replacing its first and business class onboard lounges in its Airbus A340-600 planes with more economy class seats as demand for first and business class travel has declined in the past six months. Akbar al Baker, the carrier's CEO said the lounges were not used often enough to justify the extravagant use of space. The carrier's four A340-600s will undergo the changes in September and 44 economy seats will be added.

  • Qatar delays deadline for offshore gas bids

    Qatar Petroleum (QP) has delayed the deadline for bids on an offshore gas area by three weeks after combining two of the blocks last month.

  • Qatar Electricity & Water announces 8.6 per cent profit rise

    Qatar Electricity & Water Company's (QEWC) first quarter net profits are up 8.6 per cent compared with the same period a year ago.

  • Qatar expects budget deficit

    Qatar expects to post its first budget deficit for eight years during the new financial year which began on 1 April because of the sharp drop in oil prices.

  • Qatar invites bids for Al-Ruwais fishing harbour work

    The Public Works Authority (Ashgal) has invited companies to bid by 26 May for three construction packages on an upgrade to the fishing harbour at Al-Ruwais in Qatar.

  • Qatar Islamic Bank considers issuing sukuk

    Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) will look at issuing sukuk within the next six months if financial market conditions ease sufficiently for the bank to access international markets.

  • Qatar postpones deadlines for bids on power packages

    Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa) has extended the deadlines for bids for several packages on its phase nine project to expand the country's electricity transmission network.

  • Qatar signs OnAir communications deal

    Qatar Airways and OnAir have signed an agreement to install Mobile OnAir in-flight passenger communications services on the airline's entire single-aisle Airbus fleet, on Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and European routes. Passengers will be able to stay connected inflight using their own mobile phones or PDA devices to send and receive text messages and emails, and access the internet.

  • Qatar, Hydro's smelter to start in Q4

    Qatalum, a $5.6bn smelter joint venture between Qatar and Norway's Norsk Hydro, is expected to begin commissioning in the fourth quarter, a Qatari official told Reuters. Abdullah Hussain Salatt, an advisor to the country's oil minister, said the smelter plans to sell its first cargo by early next year and will target customers in Europe and the Far East.

  • Qatar: Coast guard station consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for the construction, completion and maintenance of coast guard stations. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Qatar: Coast guard stations

    Construction and maintenance of coast guard stations. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Qatar: Energy meters

    Supply and installation of energy meters. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Qatar: Excavation services

    Provision of excavation services. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Qatar: Fibre optic closures

    Supply and delivery of fibre optic joint closures. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Qatar: Mosques

    Engineering, procurement, installation and construction of mosques and an Eid Musalla. Closing date: 17 May 2009

  • Qatar: Mosques

    Engineering, procurement, installation and construction of mosques and an Eid Musalla. Closing date: 17 May 2009

  • Qatar: NFA shutdown maintenance support

    Provision of maintenance support services for an NFA shutdown. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Qatar: Pallet racking

    Provision of pallet racking with a fork-lift for a warehouse. Closing date: 20 April 2009

  • Qatar: Port development

    Carrying out developmental works at Al-Ruwais Port. Closing date: 26 May 2009

  • Qatar: Road works (2)

    Reconstruction, rehabilitation and maintenance of roads. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Qatar: Road works (3)

    Reconstruction, rehabilitation and maintenance of roads. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Qatar: Road works (4)

    Reconstruction, rehabilitation and maintenance of roads. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Qatar: Security services

    Provision of security services. Closing date: 4 May 2009

  • Qatar: Semi-skilled labour

    Provision of semi-skilled labour services. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Qatar: Technical manpower services

    Provision of technical manpower services. Closing date: 20 April 2009

  • Qatar: Vessel charter

    Chartering of two anchor handling tug/ supply vessels. Closing date: 10 May 2009

  • Qatargas signs supply deal with Polish firm

    Qatargas has signed a 20-year deal with Poland's state-owned gas exploration and production company, PGNIG, for the supply of 1 million tonnes a year (t/y) of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

  • RAK Petroleum completes Oman oil concession acquisitions

    The UAE’s RAK Petroleum has increased its share in Oman’s exploration blocks 31 and 47 to 100 per cent following the acquisition of two oil and gas exploration companies.

  • Raysut Cement Q1 profit falls 34%

    Oman's Raysut Cement Co. has reported earnings of RO7.841 million in the first quarter, down by 33.8% from the year-earlier period. Raysut's net income in the three months to March 31 fell to RO7.841 million, compared with RO11.85 million in the first quarter of 2008.

  • Red tide closes Dubai beaches

    Dubai Municipality has announced the closure of some of the city's beaches around the Burj Al Arab following confirmation of reports of red tide. Red tide is a bloom of algae, microscopic marine organisms. Some are harmful to humans as well as to marine life. Authorities expected the bloom to recede in the coming days.

  • Regional air passenger traffic increases

    Middle East aviation enjoyed a strong month in March with passenger traffic growing by 4.7 per cent year-on-year.

  • Regional bankers avoid large salary cuts

    Bankers in the Middle East have seen their salaries cut by an average of less than 10 per cent between 2008 and 2009, while globally bankers have lost an average of 55 per cent of their salaries, according to a survey by UK-based headhunters Napier Scott Search.

  • Repsol finds new gas in Algeria

    Spain’s Repsol plans to drill 35 oil and gas exploration wells in 2009 following a new gas discovery in Algeria’s Ahnet basin.

  • Repsol-YPF and OMV make Libyan oil discovery

    Spain’s Repsol-YPF and Austria’s OMV have made their first offshore discovery in Libya’s Sirte Basin as part of a joint venture with the state-run National Oil Corporation (NOC).

  • Residential property sales collapse in Qatar

    The volume of residential property sales in Qatar has fallen sharply as banks are no longer prepared to finance the purchase of new homes, according to new research from US-based Colliers International.

  • Riyadh buys missiles from Raytheon

    Saudi Arabia has purchased $100m of air-to-air missiles from the US defence group Raytheon.

  • Riyadh cuts rates to spur lending

    The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Sama) has cut its reverse repurchase (repo) rate to 0.5 per cent in a bid to get the banking sector lending again.

  • RJ re-introduces flights to Brussels

    Royal Jordanian has re-introduced service to Brussels six years after suspending flights to the Belgian capital for commercial reasons. Twice-weekly flights on Wednesdays and Saturdays will now be carried out using A319s. Last July, an open skies agreement was signed between Belgium and Jordan, granting both countries 3rd and 4th freedom rights to operate direct, unlimited frequencies between Brussels and Amman.

  • Rosewood to manage hotel on Sowwah Island

    Rosewood Hotels & Resorts have signed a management contract with Mubadala Development Company for a new business hotel on Sowwah Island in Abu Dhabi. Opening in early 2012, Rosewood Abu Dhabi will be a 34-story hotel offering approximately 190 guest rooms and suites and approximately 140 serviced residences. The hotel will be developed by Mubadala Real Estate & Hospitality in partnership with John Buck International.

  • Royal Jordanian suffers $33m loss

    Royal Jordanian suffered a loss of JD23m ($32.5m) in 2008, despite a 29 per cent increase in the company’s revenues to JD702.7m.

  • Sabic buys Rhemax product line

    Sabic Innovative Plastics said it has agreed to acquire the RheMax product line from US firm RheTech, Inc, which will be the toll manufacturer of Sabic Innovative Plastics' LGFPP (long glass fiber-filled polypropylene) resins that were launched in North America in September 2008. The acquisition enables Sabic Innovative Plastics to immediately fulfill North American automotive OEM and tier product needs from local production.

  • Sabic makes loss in 2009

    Saudi Basic Industries Company (Sabic), the Middle East’s largest company by market capitalisation, has reported a first quarter loss of SR973m ($259m) despite making a large profit in the comparable period a year before.

  • Sabic pays out $2.4bn in dividends for 2008

    Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), Saudi Arabia’s largest company by market capitalization, will pay its shareholders dividends totaling SR9bn ($2.4bn) for its operations in 2008.

  • Sabic reports Q1 loss

    The head of Saudi Basic Industries Corp (Sabic) said the company would look to cut costs after recording a worse-than-expected loss of SR974 million ($259.3m) in the first quarter. Mohamed Al-Mady told Reuters there were signs of improvement in demand and prices for petrochemicals but not to a satisfactory level.

  • Sabic shareholders approve dividend

    Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) has released a statement saying that shareholders have approved a cash dividend for 2008 of SR3 (80 cents) per share. Sabic also agreed to transfer 10% of 2008 profit into ordinary reserves and place the remainder into general reserves.

  • Safco profits beat forecast

    Saudi Arabian Fertilizers Co (Safco), which is 42.9% owned by Saudi Basic Industries Corp has declared a drop of 27.4% in its net profit for the first quarter of 2009. Citing a drop in global prices, the company reported a net profit of SR525m, down from SR723m in the first quarter of 2008. The result was still above analysts' forecasts.

  • Safco rated 'buy' by Citigroup

    Saudi Arabian Fertilizer Co, a unit of Saudi Basic Industries Corp, was rated 'buy' in new coverage at Citigroup Inc, as falling crop yields prompted farmers to use more of the company's products and boost prices, reported Bloomberg.

  • Samba and SABB report rise in profits

    Saudi Arabia’s Samba has reported a 6 per cent increase in first-quarter profits, while rival Saudi bank SABB has reported a 0.4 per cent rise in profits for the same period.

  • Saudi Airlines signs $900m Rolls-Royce deal

    Saudi Arabian Airlines has signed a $900m deal with Rolls-Royce to use the company's Trent 700EP engines on up to 12 of its Airbus A330 planes, with delivery starting from 2010. The contract, which includes a long-term service agreement, is a firm order for use on eight planes with an option to use the engine on another four. The Trent Enhanced Performance engines have reduced fuel burn and emission levels, which is considered important for Middle East operations because it helps the aircraft

  • Saudi Arabia: Airport legal consultancy services

    Provision of legal consultancy services as part of a project to expand and rehabilitate an airport. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Airport technical consultancy services

    Provision of technical consultancy services as part of a project to expand and rehabilitate an airport. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Cable terminations

    Replacement of 115kV cable terminations. Closing date: 16 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Clinics

    Construction of clinics. Closing date: 4 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Data centre network upgrade

    Upgrade of a network at a data centre. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Health education consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for the construction of health education facilities. Closing date: 12 July 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Medical centre expansion

    Expansion of a medical centre. New closing date: 25 August 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Mosques

    Construction of two mosques. Closing date: 31 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Power line insulator washing

    Washing of power line insulators. Closing date: 21 April 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Radiology equipment

    Supply of radiology equipment for a hospital. Closing date: 9 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Road paving rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of pavements for primary roads. Closing date: 5 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Social and cultural centre

    Construction of a social and cultural centre. Closing date: 3 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Substation chillers

    Replacement of three HVAC chillers at a substation. Closing date: 27 April 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Substations

    Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of substations and transmission circuits. Closing date: 12 May 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Water meters

    Supply and installation of electronic water meters. Closing date: 19 May 2009

  • Saudi Binladin and Thales sign rail deal

    Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) and France’s Thales have signed a contract to provide signalling and telecoms networks on Saudi Arabia’s North-South minerals railway.

  • Saudi Binladin, Thales to sign rail deal

    French defence group Thales and construction firm Saudi Binladin Group are to sign contracts today on a $533m deal to build Saudi Arabia's ambitious North-South Railway, government and company officials said. The two companies have been chosen to build signalling and security systems for the main 1,800-km section of the $2.8bn project.

  • Saudi Cement profit down 12%

    Saudi Cement said its profit in the first quarter of this year fell 12.3% due to a government ban on exports of cement and its derivatives. The company made SR152 million ($40.5m) in the three months to March 31, down from SR173.3 million riyals a year earlier.

  • Saudi cement sales up 15%

    A report by HSBC Holdings has said that Saudi Arabia cement sales rose 15% to 5.6 million tonnes in the first two months of this year compared with the year-earlier period. 'Without the lifting of the export ban, it seems inevitable that the pressure of rising inventories will lead to price declines,' HSBC said. 'With local sales seemly robust, we see no reason for the authorities to relent on the ban.'

  • Saudi Electricity announces plant prequalifiers

    Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has announced the list of companies prequalified for its planned Riyadh PP11 independent power project.

  • Saudi inflation falls to 6 per cent

    Inflation in Saudi Arabia has fallen to 6 per cent for the year to March, from 6.9 per cent in February, according to the Central Statistics Department.

  • Saudi plane seized in French dispute

    A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200 has been seized upon its arrival from Riyadh at the airport by bailiffs at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, according to Europe 1 radio station. Bailiffs were acting on instructions from the Saint Nazaire commercial tribunal in the west of France. Eagle Aviation, an aircraft leasing firm based in Saint Nazaire, claims that it is owed $2m for providing the aircraft.

  • Saudia agrees $900m Rolls-Royce deal

    Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) has finalised a deal with Rolls-Royce for engineering and maintenance worth up to $900m at list prices.

  • Savola to up refining capacity in Saudi

    Savola Foods' Chief Executive Zouhair Eloudghari said the company will increase its edible oil refining capacity in Saudi Arabia from 300,000 to 400,000 tonnes per year at the end of 2009 when a new refining unit comes online. Eloudghari said the company will use the added capacity to boost market share in nearby countries such as Syria and Iraq.

  • Seagate launches new hard drives

    Seagate has introduced new hard drives designed for optimal performance in digital video surveillance systems. The Seagate SV35.5 hard drive provides a number of key advantages for video surveillance environments over standard hard drives including: performance-tuned 140 MB/s sustained sequential data rates and ATA-7 streaming commands for high-speed transfers, enhanced caching capabilities and built-in error recovery for non-stop streaming, according to a press statement. With disk capacitie

  • Seven banks to pitch for Dolphin Energy bond

    Abu Dhabi’s Dolphin Energy will hold talks with seven international banks for the mandated lead arranger role on a bond of up to $1bn on 29 and 30 April.

  • Sharjah plans Al-Sajaa wastewater plant

    Sharjah municipality is planning to build a AED1.2bn ($327m) wastewater treatment plant in the Al-Sajaa Industrial area.

  • Shuaa shareholders to vote on firm's future

    UAE investment bank Shuaa Capital says it will remain in business after shareholders vote on the company’s future.

  • Shuaa shareholders vote to keep business open

    The shareholders of Dubai-based investment bank Shuaa Capital have voted for the company to continue operating despite the losses that it made in 2008.

  • Sohar smelter inaugurated

    Oman's Sohar Aluminium new-generation smelter has been inaugurated. Construction of the $2.4bn AP36 smelter began at the end of 2005 and it produced its first hot metal in June, 2008. It reached full capacity on February 19 this year. The new smelter is a joint venture between Brazil's Rio Tinto Alcan (20%), Oman Oil Company (40%) and Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (40%).

  • Sonatrach discovers oil in Libya

    Algeria’s state-run Sonatrach has discovered its first oil in Libya’s Ghadames Basin, 230 kilometres south of Tripoli.

  • Sony unveils new notebook

    Sony has unveiled the new Vaio P series Lifestyle PC, the world's lightest 8-inch notebook. About the size of a business envelope and roughly as thin as a cellphone, the Vaio P weighs just 594g with SSD / 620g with HDD and is small enough to slip into a pocket or handbag while integrating full-PC features.

  • Speeding causes 80% of accidents in Dubai, says official

    Dubai officials are calling on motorists to comply with the prescribed speed limits and refrain from reckless driving. 'Over speeding is responsible for about 80% of traffic accidents and claims hundreds of lives every year," said Hussain Al Banna, Director of Traffic at RTA Traffic & Roads Agency. 'Statistics show that over speeding in 2008 resulted in 375 casualties ranging from death to body injury and various losses.' RTA has launched the Haseb Safety Campaign which aims to educate motori

  • Spending on technology in new GCC hotels to top $290m

    Spending on communications and technology infrastructure for new hotels in the Gulf in 2009 and 2010 is forecast to exceed $290m, according to research by Proleads. Spending on communications infrastructure, which includes cabling, telephony, hotel management systems and hotel room TVs, will peak this year in the UAE at almost $81m but decline in 2010 to just over $46m. Qatar will also record a slight fall from $5.7m this year to just over $3m in 2010.

  • Sphinx Egypt sets up distressed assets fund

    Egypt’s Sphinx Private Equity Management (Sphinx Egypt), a subsidiary of Citadel Capital, has launched a $100m fund that will target distressed assets.

  • ST-Ericsson to cut 1,200 jobs

    ST-Ericsson, the wireless technology company created in February by French-Italian group STMicroelectronics and Sweden's Ericsson has announced in a statement that it is cutting 1,200 jobs worldwide, out of a total of 8,000, due to declining sales and 'a limited visibility as to an improvement in the market.'

  • Stolt tankers posts Q1 loss of $2.5m

    Chemical tanker specialist Stolt Tankers reported an operating loss of $2.5m for the first quarter this year versus operating profit of $27.5m for the previous quarter. Niels G Stolt-Nielsen, CEO of its Oslo-listed parent Stolt Nielsen said that results 'reflect the panic in the global credit markets that we saw late last year. As producers, traders and consumers stopped ordering products, global industrial production plunged'.

  • Subiya power plant retender nears

    Contractors expect Kuwait’s Electricity & Water Ministry to issue a new tender for its planned Subiya power plant on 19 April.

  • Sudan: Emergency food crisis response project

    Supply of goods and provision of consultancy and related services for an emergency food crisis response project. Closing date: not stated

  • Sudan: Food crisis response project

    Supply of goods and provision of consultancy and related services for an emergency food crisis response project. Closing date: not stated

  • Suez Canal revenues drop 21.5 per cent

    Revenues at the Suez Canal were $328m in March, a decline of 21.5 per cent year-on-year.

  • Syria appoints managers at energy firms

    Syria has appointed managers for two recently created state-run oil and gas companies, which the government created in an attempt to simplify the country’s energy sector.

  • Syria invites firms to register interest in heavy crude scheme

    The state-run Syrian Petroleum Company (SPC) has approached companies to register interest in a scheme to treat heavy crude from its oil fields.

  • Syria: Diesel engine accumulator cells

    Supply of alkaline accumulator cells for locomotive engines. Closing date: 8 June 2009

  • Syria: Heavy oil study/ treatment

    Provision of a study and/or carrying out the treatment of heavy oil produced from Syrian oil fields. Closing date: 20 April 2009

  • Syria: Oil base mud products

    Supply of oil base mud products. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Syria: Tong torque assembly

    Supply of tong torque assembly. Closing date: 25 May 2009

  • Syrian Arab Airlines plans Gulf expansion

    Syrian Arab Airlines hopes to launch fligts from Damascus to new destinations in the Gulf during April after leasing a new Airbus A320 aircraft.

  • Takaful market to hit $7.7bn by 2012

    The Islamic insurance market (takaful) is forecast to hit $7.7bn in 2012, more than double the size of the market in 2007, according to the World Takaful Report, published by UK accounting firm Ernst & Young (E&Y).

  • Takreer prequalifies firms for Ruwais refinery deals

    Abu Dhabi Refining Company (Takreer) has prequalified companies to bid for construction contracts spread across seven packages for its grassroots refinery expansion project at Ruwais.

  • Tameer invites firms to express interest in towers

    Local developer Tameer Holding has invited companies to express interest in the contract to build its Tameer Towers project in Abu Dhabi.

  • TDIC says projects are 'on schedule'

    Abu Dhabi's Tourism Development and Investment Company said it is moving forward with all of its announced projects, including its flagship project on Saadiyat Island, reported The National. James Pringle, executive director of development at TDIC, said the projects are all on schedule.

  • Tech Mahindra wins bid for Satyam

    India's Tech Mahindra has secured the winning bid for Satyam Computer Services, which has been struggling since its founder earlier this year confessed to staging India's biggest accounting fraud. The mid-level outsourcing firm will have to pay nearly $600m for a majority share of Satyam, which was India's fourth-largest outsourcer by revenues when the scandal broke.

  • Telecoms giants compete for Jubail communications deal

    Eleven telecommunications companies have bid for a $200m communications package on Saudi Aramco’s 400,000 barrel-a-day (b/d) Jubail export refinery.

  • Tenders issued for Al-Jahra road upgrade

    Kuwait's Public Works Ministry has invited prequalified companies to bid for a contract to upgrade Jahra road to the west of Kuwait City by 7 June.

  • Tethys Oil starts drilling in Oman

    Sweden’s Tethys Oil has started drilling at a well in its onshore block 4 concession in Oman in the hope of making a find four years after the previous licence holder abandoned the site.

  • Tethys reports oil flow at Oman well

    Sweden’s Tethys Oil’s Farha South 3 oil well at the company’s onshore Block 3 concession in Oman has flowed at 754 barrels a day under test conditions.

  • Three firms bid for $11bn Doha airport work

    At least three companies have bid for the contract to build three utility plants at the $11bn New Doha International airport (NDIA).

  • Three Gulf carriers in Skytrax top 10

    According to survey findings by Skytrax, the specialist research advisors to the air transport industry, three Middle East carriers - Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways - have ranked higher in the 2009 list of top 10 airlines in the world, compared to a year earlier. Emirates came fifth, up from the ninth spot the airline occupied for the last two years. Etihad Airways moved up three notches to the seventh position this year, having made a fresh entry in the top 10 list last year. Qat

  • Trading on Nasdaq Dubai rises 62 per cent

    Nasdaq Dubai said that equity trading on the exchange has risen by 62 per cent in the first quarter of 2009, with the total number of shares traded hitting 1.04 billion during the period.

  • Tunisia: Computer network materials

    Supply of computer network and security infrastructure materials. Closing date: 14 May 2009

  • Tunisia: Ductile iron pipes

    Supply of 9,000 metres of ductile iron pipe. Closing date: 14 May 2009

  • Tunisia: Fibre optic transmission equipment

    Supply of fibre optic transmission equipment for railway stations. Closing date: 17 June 2009

  • Tunisia: Isolators

    Supply of 170,000 isolators. Closing date: 17 June 2009

  • Tunisia: Power cables

    Supply of power cables. Closing date: 17 June 2009

  • Tunisia: Railway line girder reinforcement

    Reinforcement of girders on railway lines. Closing date: 17 June 2009

  • Tunisia: Solid waste management project

    Rehabilitation of rubbish dumps for a sustainable municipal solid waste management project. Closing date: 20 May 2009

  • UAE 2009 aircraft movements up

    Data from the General Civil Aviation Authority showed the highest aircraft movement in the UAE in the first three months of this year was registered in March, with a 6.2% increase with 47,804 aircraft movement compared to the 45,009 in the corresponding period in the previous year, while in January and February, aircraft movement had shown an increase of 4.63% and 2.67% respectively over the corresponding period last year.

  • UAE among top 30 countries in network readiness

    The UAE ranks among the world's top 30 countries in network readiness and internet penetration, but needs to further support start-up companies to reinforce its leadership in information and communication technology, according to Malek Al Malek, Executive Director, Dubai Internet City. Addressing the Telecom Finance Middle East and Africa conference on Tuesday, Malek said the DIC could sustain growth since its inception in 2000 with 140 companies joining the cluster in 2008, bringing the tota

  • UAE central bank assets drop 32 per cent

    The assets of the Central Bank of the UAE fell by 32 per cent during 2008, hitting AED193.7bn ($52.7bn) as a result of the drop in asset prices globally.

  • UAE improves in global ICT rank

    The Global Information Technology Report 2008-2009 has ranked the UAE this year in 27th place, two places higher from last year. The rankings were delivered by the World Economic Forum and Insead Business School covering 134 countries in its ninth year of publication. The UAE tops the rank among Middle East and North African countries.

  • UAE to reward safe motorists

    The UAE says it will give cash rewards to safe drivers to encourage road safety. Under the campaign known as 'The Caltex Roadstar Contest', motorists who are observed driving safely will receive a Dhs750 reward. The campaign will issue a total of Dhs60,000 in rewards and will run until April 15 in the UAE emirates of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Fujairah.

  • UAE: Airport midfield utility plants

    Construction of midfield utility plants and distribution at Abu Dhabi International Airport. Closing date: 30 April 2009

  • UAE: Labour accommodation

    Construction of labour accommodation. Closing date: 19 April 2009

  • UAE: Marine petrol engines

    Supply of marine petrol engines. Closing date: 14 April 2009

  • UAE: Medical consumables

    Supply of medical consumables. Closing date: 26 April 2009

  • UAE: Security guard services

    Provision of security guard services. Closing date: 20 May 2009

  • UAE's MAG in talks to buy plant in France

    Sharjah-based industrial and property group MAG has confirmed it was engaged in 'initial' talks with Continental AG to buy a factory in the city of Clairoix in France, but it was too early to talk about striking a deal. A MAG spokesman told Reuters the group was looking to expand its 'activities' in Europe, but with talks beginning only six days earlier it was still 'very early' to talk about a deal or its value.

  • UK team to design Saudi railway stations

    A UK-based joint venture of Foster & Partners and Buro Happold has been appointed to design four stations on the Haramain high-speed railway (HHR) between Mecca and Medina.

  • Union National Bank profits fall 10 per cent

    Abu Dhabi’s Union National Bank (UNB) generated net profits of AED303.9m ($82.5m) in the first quarter of 2009, a fall of 10 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

  • US court dismisses rival claims by Sipchem and Celanese

    A US court has dismissed claims by US chemicals producer Celanese and Saudi International Petrochemical Company (Sipchem) against one another in a dispute over technology licences.

  • US firms start work on Qatar building projects

    A joint venture of two US-based project management firms has started work on three construction projects in Qatar worth $2.9bn.

  • US regulators get tough with Doha Bank

    Qatar’s Doha Bank could face further action after being fined $5m by the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen) for failing to put in place adequate procedures to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.

  • US slow to shape Middle East policy

    It has been 100 days and we are still waiting for US President Barack Obama's Middle East plan. Without action soon, others will fill the policy void.

  • Veolia wins $71m Qatar sewage deal

    French group Veolia has won a $71.7m contract to operate and maintain the Doha South sewage treatment plant in Qatar, Meed magazine has reported. The contract covers operation and maintenance services for the Doha South wastewater treatment plant and also covers industrial area sewage treatment works for the Public Works Authority (Ashghal).

  • Veolia wins Doha South wastewater deal

    France's Veolia has won a QR261m ($71.7m) contract for the operation and maintenance of the Doha South sewage treatment plant in Qatar.

  • Wared Logistics begins operations

    Wared Logistics, a joint venture between Zahid Group Holding and Construction Products Holding Company has begun its operations. Wared has acquired Zahid Heanor and United Transport Company. The company will have four operating companies offering transport, express, distribution and customs brokerage.

  • Wared Logistics rolls out operations

    Wared Logistics, a provider of logistics and transportation services for the Middle East and North Africa, has formally launched its services. Wared Logistics is a joint venture between Zahid Group Holding and Construction Products Holding Company. Underneath the Wared Logistics holding company are four operating companies: Wared International, Wared Express, Wared Transport, and Wared Distribution.

  • Yahoo 'to announce job cuts'

    Reports by the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal say that Yahoo may announce a new round of layoffs next week, the third one since early 2008 and the first staff-trimming under new CEO Carol Bartz. The round of layoffs could affect several hundred employees, when Yahoo is scheduled to report its first-quarter financial results, the newspapers reported, quoting anonymous sources.

  • Yemen: Back-hoe loader

    Supply of a hydraulic excavator back-hoe loader. Closing date: 27 May 2009

  • YouTube, Google deny censorship in UAE

    YouTube and Google say they have no plans to monitor the Internet or ban online content in the UAE. Alhtough several representatives from Google, which owns YouTube, did meet informally with Dubai Police in March to help foster mutual understanding, the companies are not in the process of drawing up a censorship plan for the UAE, a spokesperson said. Google was responding to a report from the Doha Centre for Media Freedom, which called on the company to reject what it said was a request from

  • ZamilCoolcare inks BinLadin deal

    Zamil CoolCare has signed an agreement with Saudi Binladin Group to commission the mechanical and electrical systems of all Phase One facilities at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology project, in Saudi Arabia. Under the terms of the contract Zamil CoolCare will provide supervisory commissioning services for the conveying, fire fighting and suppression, plumbing, HVAC, building management, electrical, communications, utility metering, solar and life support systems.

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