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MEED
Nov 2009 Online Content

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  • H.E. Abdulla Saif Al Nuaimi, Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority (ADWEA)

    The privatisation programme, future energy sources and future major projects, including opportunities for the private sector are spoken about by H.E. Abdulla Saif Al Nuaimi, Director of Privatisation, ADWEA at the Abu Dhabi Conference 2009.

  • 11th Dubai Airshow displays growth

    The 11th edition of the Dubai Airshow, November 2009, is set to be bigger in terms of exhibition space than the record breaking event in 2007. Alison Weller, Director, Fairs & Exhibitions, Aerospace previews the show with Phil Blizzard and also talks about the new Emirates exhibition hall. First posted September 2009

  • A tale of two Gulf cities

    Abu Dhabi is on the rise and leading the region with a range of startling projects. But the development of Dubai is far from over

  • Abu Dhabi invites firms to prequalify for stadium deal

    Project is part of Capital District development adjacent to Khalifa City

  • Abu Dhabi National Hotels' profit up 27.8%

    Abu Dhabi National Hotels (ADNH) has reported that its net profit rose 27.8% in the first nine months of the year, despite a drop in its hotels division. The company, which owns the Hilton, Le Meridien and Al Diar line of hotels in the capital, reported that net profits rose to Dhs372.5m ($101.4m), from Dhs291.5m for the same period last year. However, ADNH's hotel division reported that net profit fell by 17% to Dhs217m in the first nine months of this year, compared with Dh263m for the same

  • Abu Dhabi National Hotels to complete loan in late November

    Institutions negotiate prices as UAE liquidity remains tight

  • Abu Dhabi passenger numbers up

    The Abu Dhabi Airports Co (Adac) has said that the Abu Dhabi International Airport has posted a 7% increase in passengers so far in 2009. The airport saw a 2.8% increase in passengers and 24.3% increase in cargo in October 2009, compared to the same month last year, Adac said in a statement.

  • Abu Dhabi plans $200m gas pipeline revamp

    Contractors asked to express interest ahead of bidding in early 2010

  • Abu Dhabi plans second phase of Al-Bateen Marina

    Marina to be built for yachts and club

  • Abu Dhabi plans to spend $68bn on public transport system

    Emirate set to introduce parking and congestion charges

  • Abu Dhabi sees 7.5% passenger rise

    Abu Dhabi International Airport has recorded 7.5% passenger growth in the last three quarters compared to the same period last year. Passenger traffic figures also showed a 6.8% increase for the month of September alone, compared to the same month of 2008.

  • Abu Dhabi to build computer chips

    Abu Dhabi's government-owned investment vehicle, Mubadala has announced plans to manufacture computer chips in the country, Reuters has reported. The firm, which owns a stake in Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), has committed $10bn to the project through Globalfoundries, a contract chip maker which is co-owned by AMD and Abu Dhabi investor Advanced Technology Investment Co. (ATIC). 'In four years, you'll see the first foundry in Abu Dhabi,' Mubadala chief operating officer, Waleed Al Muhairi said

  • Abu Dhabi to open bids on gas pipeline

    Engineering, procurement and construction deal worth up to $150m

  • Abu Dhabi to receive bids for road project in Dec

    John Lee, an advisor to Abu Dhabi's Department of Transport, has said the emirate will receive bids in December for a $2.72bn highway project, Bloomberg has reported. The 327-kilometre road will link the emirate to Saudi Arabia.

  • Acer notebooks top Mideast market in Q2

    Acer Computer nabbed the lion's share of the notebook market in the Middle East and Africa region in the second quarter of 2009, according to research from analyst house Gartner. The IT vendor captured a 30.1% market share across the region for the period, the research showed.

  • Adac to install Thales traffic control system

    Abu Dhabi Airports Co (Adac) has said that it will install the latest generation Air Traffic Control systems from French group Thales, as part of $6.8bn development project to modernise facilities at the capital's International Airport. The new system will enable controllers to share data on aircraft positions and to operate seamless handovers between territories, Adac said.

  • ADBIC inks aluminium extrusion MoU

    Abu Dhabi Basic Industries Corp. (ADBIC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Gulf Extrusions Co. aimed at establishing a $100m (Dhs368m) aluminium extrusion plant in Taweelah. Construction of the plant is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2010 at the Khalifa Port and Industrial Zone in Taweelah. The plant will produce 50,000 tons per annum of aluminium extrusion and extrusion-based niche-oriented products, such as high-end architectural systems and automotive and engineering

  • ADIC gets ok to buy Chartered Semi

    Shareholders of Singapore's Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing have approved an offer by Abu Dhabi to buy the world's third-biggest maker of customized chips for S$2.5bn ($1.8bn), the chairman of the Singaporean company said today. Advanced Technology Investment Co., an investment company owned by Abu Dhabi, will pay S$2.68 ($1.86) a share in cash for Chartered Semiconductor, ATIC said in September. Abu Dhabi plans to combine the maker of chips used in Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 game conso

  • ADNOC unit inks deal with Drydocks World

    ADNOC Group's shipping arm, ADNATCO-NGSCO has signed a strategic alliance agreement with Drydocks World, WAM has reported. According to the agreement, some of ADNATCO-NGSCO vessels will be able to use Far Eastern facilities owned by Drydocks World in Singapore and on Batam Island, Indonesia. ADNATCO-NGSCO comprises two fleets. Abu Dhabi National Tanker Company (ADNATCO) operates a fleet of chemicals, petroleum products RoRo and bulk carriers, while National Gas Shipping Company (NGSCO) owns a

  • Advisers line up for Kuwait metro scheme

    Public-private partnership project attracts interest from 45 consultants

  • Aecom wins Masdar project management work

    Suburb to be built adjacent to science and technology institute in Abu Dhabi

  • Agility posts 15% rise in Q3 profit

    Kuwait-based logisitics firm Agility has exceeded forecasts by posting a 15% rise in third-quarter net profits, Reuters has reported. Net income in the three months to September 30 rose to KD40.5m from KD35.2m in the year-earlier period. Net profit for the first nine months of 2009 also climbed 7% to KD115.5m, compared to the same period a year earlier.

  • Air Arabia net profit up 6%

    UAE-based low-cost carrier, Air Arabia has said that its net profit for the first nine months of 2009 grew by 6% to Dhs337m, compared to Dhs318m for the same period in 2008. The airline has served 2.96 million passengers during the period, an increase of 14% compared to 2.6 million passengers during the corresponding period last year. However, net profit for the three months ending September 30, 2009, had declined by 9% to Dhs144m, compared to Dhs158m for the same period in 2008.

  • Air Arabia plans six new planes

    Adel Ali, CEO of the Sharjah-based low-cost carrier, has said he expects the airline to add six new planes next year, Bloomberg has reported. 'In 2010 we are penciling to get six planes between the three hubs and then we are talking to manufacturers to have leased options,' he said. The carrier yesterday announced a 33% drop in Q3 profits, bucking analyst expectations of a larger drop.

  • Air Austral buys two A380s

    Air Austral, the carrier based on the French-controlled Reunion island in the Indian ocean, has signed a deal for two Airbus A380 superjumbos at the Dubai Airshow today. The planes will be the first all-economy version of the airliner and will be configured to seat 840 passengers. The aircraft will be operated on the high-density route from Reunion to Paris, Airbus said.

  • Air Liquide wins Qatar gas plant contract

    Qatar Petroleum and Sasol award Oryx construction work

  • Airbus considers delaying A380 deliveries

    Airbus has said that one or two of the superjumbo A380s scheduled for delivery this year may be pushed back to January 2010, Reuters has reported. Client financing remains difficult and it would take time for the business environment to return to normal, the France-based firm said. "Everything will depend on airlines' capacity to take these planes at the end of the year," Chief Operating Officer Fabrice Bregier said. Airbus has to date delivered seven of the 13 A380s scheduled for this year.

  • Airbus expects delivery numbers to match 2008

    Airbus on Monday said that it expects to match the number of planes it delivered last year in 2009. Speaking at the Dubai Airshow, the company's President and CEO Tom Ender said that the group is on track to repeat the 2008 delivery record of 483 planes in 2009, and maybe even exceed it.

  • Airbus Private Aviation previews Dubai Airshow

    The business and private jet sector of the aviation industry is seeing good growth in the region and manufacturers are looking to the Dubai Airshow to boost their order books. Phil Blizzard talks to Francios Chazelle, VP, Executive & Private Aviation, Airbus Middle East about their fleet and the market in this region.

  • Al Barari eyes Western Region resort

    Chairman of Dubai-based developer Al Barari, has said the company is eyeing the Western Region Municipality of Abu Dhabi for a "very private, exclusive resort", accessible only by an air strip, the National has reported. "I want to spend six months looking around the Western Region for the right place," Zaal Mohammed Zaal said. "It would be a real escapist resort in the desert."

  • Al Jaber Aviation defines private air space

    Despite a global downturn in the aviation industry Abu Dhabi based AJA see a buoyant future with their 'Private Airspace' product offerings. Phil Blizzard talks to Dr Mark Pierotti, COO, AJA about their fleet of aircraft, including Airbus Corporate Jetliners and what one can expect in your own 'Private Airspace'.

  • ALAFCO records KD10.2m profit for 2009

    Kuwait-based Alafco Aviation Lease and Finance Co has reported a net profit of KD10.2m ($35.6m) in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009. Shareholders equity has climbed by 15% to KD93.6m ($326.5m). Alafco's fleet had seen a substantial increase in the number of leased aircraft as it took delivery of 12 Boeing and Airbus aircraft directly from manufacturers, of which nine were leased to local, regional and global airlines, increasing the leased aircraft portfolio to 26, the firm said in a

  • Al-Bayroni awards Jubail ammonia plant deal to US contractor

    KBR to provide engineering, procurement and supply services

  • Alessa Industries launches JV with Huntair Group

    Saudi Arabia-based Al Essa Industries has set up a joint venture with US-based Air Handing Units manufacturing and processing firm, Huntair Group. The new JV will share the industrial and market experience in addition to increase the manufacturing lines of Al Essa Industries. The agreement, which involves an investment of $200m, includes training the Saudi engineers in the fields of manufacturing and design in the US, as well as educating technicians and market specialists at Huntair.

  • Al-Falak inks distribution deal with BancTec

    Saudi Arabia-based Al Falak Electronic Equipment and Supplies Co. has inked a distribution agreement with UK-based provider of high-volume, document and payment processing solutions and services, BancTec. The agreement covers distribution of BancTec's IntelliScan and E-Series high-speed document scanning and sorting transports in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE.

  • Algeria issues tender for Djen Djen port deal

    Design and build contract covers construction of container terminal

  • Algeria seeks contractors for mosque development

    Project includes cultural centre and graduate school

  • Algeria: Gasoline coolers

    Supply and installation of six gasoline coolers. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Algeria: Hospital

    Implementation of a 240-bed hospital. Closing date: 29 December 2009

  • Algeria: Port container terminal

    Construction of a container terminal at Djen Djen port. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Almarai to build baby-formula food plant

    Georges Schorderet, chief financial officer of Almarai Co., the largest food producer in Saudi Arabia by market value, has said the company plans to invest ($173m) to build a baby-formula food plant to tap rising demand in the kingdom, Bloomberg has reported. 'Demographics are very favourable to dairy companies,' he said. 'Look at the young population. That is fantastic for us. There is room to continue to grow in the region.'

  • Almarai to invest $533m in Hail

    Saudi Arabia's largest food producer by market value, Almarai Co. has said it will invest SR2bn ($533.3m) to expand the business of Hail Agricultural Development Co. (Hadco) it had acquired recently, according to Arabic al-Eqtisadiah newspaper. The firm would focus these investments on raising Hadco's poultry output fivefolds to an average of 120,000 chicken per hour, Chairman Prince Sultan Mohamed al-Kabeer al-Saud was quoted as saying.

  • Almutlak plans 2010 IPO

    Saudi-based automotive specialist, Almutlak Trade and Industries plans to sell 30% of its shares to the public early next year as part of plans to expand its business, Reuters has reported. The money raised from the IPO will be taken by the existing shareholders while future expansion of the business will be funded from a capital increase, planned one year after listing, the IPO's adviser said. 'The plan is to have it in the first quarter of 2010 but the exact date is subject to the Capital M

  • Aloft Abu Dhabi opens

    Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide and its new destination sensation brand, Aloft Hotels, have announced the opening of Aloft Abu Dhabi, the first Aloft hotel to open in the Middle East and the only hotel in the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec). The 408-room hotel is linked directly to the Adnec, and features the soon-to-open Re:lax@12 rooftop bar, Mai Restaurant and Bar and Dine Restaurant.

  • Alstom wins $283m tram deal

    French company to deliver 74 trams for Casablanca tramway

  • AMD and Intel settle antitrust and IP disputes

    Intel Corporation and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) have announced an agreement to settle all legal disputes between the companies, including antitrust litigation and patent cross license disputes, the companies said in a joint statement. Under the agreemet, Intel will pay AMD $1.25bn, and both companies will give up any claims of breach from previous license agreement. AMD will drop all pending litigation, the statement added.

  • Arabian Cement inks deal with FLSmidth

    Egypt-based Arabian Cement Company has signed a €21m agreement with Denmark-based global engineering firm, FLSmidth for the supply of engineering and equipment for a 360 tonnes per day cement mill and packing plant. The contract comprises all major equipment such as two UMS cement mills and cement silos as well as three cement packing/dispatch plants. Commissioning of the equipment is scheduled to take place by the end of 2010.

  • Aramex keeps 'buy' rating at HC Brokerage

    Egypt-based HC Brokerage has said it has maintained its 'buy' rating recommendation on Aramex and its target price of Dhs2.28 per share. 'We continue to like Aramex for its solid regional presence, strong management, and asset-light structure that grants operating flexibility and a large cash balance for expansions,' the brokerage firm said.

  • Atkins wins Kuwaiti wastewater masterplan

    UK firm to deliver study on network upgrade in 2011

  • Avia Trust to expand aircraft support facility

    Avia Trust, an aircraft support services firm based in Dubai Airport Freezone, plans to expand its facility by 100% with another warehouse and office to meet increased business and customer requirements, Gulf News has reported. 'I am confident that 2010 will be an even better and profitable year,' Mahmoud Amini, Avia Trust's general manager told the daily. The firm is engaged in aircraft support services, supplying aircraft parts, leasing, repairing and support for aircraft.

  • Bahrain creates joint venture to develop oil field

    National Oil and Gas Authority will triple output

  • Bahrain: Electrical installation modifications

    Modification of electrical installations at housing and other buildings. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Bahrain: Medical equipment

    Supply of medical equipment. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Bahrain: National gateway infrastructure

    Provision of national gateway infrastructure. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Bahrain: Procontrol parts

    Supply of spare parts for procontrol. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Bahrain: RO plant motors

    Supply of four submersible motors for raw water supply at a reverse osmosis (RO) plant. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Bahrain: Storage tank desludging works

    Desludging and cleaning of storage tanks. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Bahrain: Substation

    Supply of an 11kV substation. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Bahrain: Substation kiosk (1)

    Supply of a 1,000kV, mineral oil-filled substation kiosk with distribution board type 1. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Bahrain: Substation kiosk (3)

    Supply of a 1,000kV, mineral oil-filled substation kiosk with distribution board type 3. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Bahrain: Workflow management system

    Provision of an integrated workflow management system. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Bahraini contractor bids low for transmission civils

    Eight firms bid for contract to carry out civils work for nine substations

  • Batelco announces phase out of dial-up internet service

    Bahrain Telecommunications Company (Batelco) has said that its dial-up service will be phased out by January 24, 2010, and called on customers still using the service to migrate to its broadband service. 'The number of dial-up customers represents less than 5% of our customers and the number decreases on a monthly basis,' Batelco's general manager Ahmed Al Janahi said.

  • Bidders to express interest in Duqm power project by December

    Oman to issue request for proposals in September 2010

  • Bids in for Kuwait private power consultancy deal

    Winning firm to carry out financial, technical and legal due diligence

  • Bill Peacock, Chief of Operations, Cleveland Clinic

    Bill Peacock, Chief of Operations at the Cleveland Clinic tells Edward Poultney how the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is developing, what the group’s plans for expansion are and how the company is ‘knowledge-sharing’ with the region’s health professionals.

  • Boeing inks deals with two Algerian carriers

    Boeing has announced that it has received orders from two Algerian airlines for its 737-800 jets. The announced was made today at the Dubai Airshow, which has seen few orders from Middle East carriers. Air Algerie ordered seven of the planes, which brings its 737 fleet to 22. The airline's CEO, Abdelwahid Bouabdallah, said the new 737-800s will help reduce operating and maintenance costs. The other order was placed by Tassili Airlines, which signed a deal for four of the jets. The deal is Boe

  • Boeing predict over 1700 aircraft for Middle East

    Boeing predict that over the next twenty years operators in the region will require more than 1700 aircraft according to Paul Kinscherff, VP, Boeing Middle East Region in conversation with Phil Blizzard. They talk about the changing aviation landscape, the breakdown in market sectors and Phil tries to get a date on when the much anticipated Dreamliner would be flying in Middle Eastern airspace.

  • Bombardier says finance options are changing for private jets

    Bizjets are a very expensive piece of aviation hardware, either for corporations or individuals, and the finance options require careful consideration. Kader Mattar, Regional VP - Sales, Bombardier talks to Phil Blizzard about the evolving financial landscape in this region, as well as their aircraft portfolio.

  • Borouge 3 site preparation contract awarded

    Borouge has awarded the contract for the site preparation of Borouge 3 expansion to Al Asab General Transportations and Contracting Establishment of Abu Dhabi. The preparation is estimated to take one year for the expansion of the company's petrochemical complex in Ruwais. The Borouge 3 petrochemical complex includes an ethane cracker, second generation Borstar polypropylene and polyethylene units, a low density polyethylene unit and a Butene unit.

  • Bouygues secures Barwa Finance District deal

    French contractor will build 19 towers in Doha

  • British airline BMI suspends Middle East routes

    Last flight to Aleppo in January

  • Cairo shortlists bidders for wind farm

    Ten companies line up for private energy scheme on Gulf of Suez

  • Canadian Clear Water builds three reverse osmosis plants

    Indian contractor completes desalination plants in Egypt, Iraq and Oman

  • Capital Markets - International Monetary Fund

    Gene Leon, Advisor, ME & Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund talks to Phil Blizzard on the impact of the economic crisis on the region’s capital markets, the various fiscal inputs across the region and the IMF’s perception on the way forward.

  • Casablanca urban transport system to cost $5.9bn

    Tramway to open 12 December 2012

  • Cathay Pacific to launch service to Jeddah

    Cathay Pacific Airways, the flag carrier of Hong Kong, has announced the launch of a new route to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The four-times-weekly service, which is to operate through Dubai on the way to and from Hong Kong, will be operated by an Airbus A330-300 aircraft in a two-class configuration. The carrier launched its service to Riyadh in 2001 and the number of flights per week was recently increased from five times a week to daily.

  • Cisco offer free security alert app

    Cisco is offering a free iPhone application that will allow people to get customized alerts on new security threats and other information for safe internet browsing, CNET wesite has reported. The Cisco 'SIO To Go' iPhone application gets its information from the company's Security Intelligence Operations (SIO) system which gathers information in real time from 700,000 sensors located at customer sites, ISPs, and other sites around the world.

  • Citadel to list on Egyptian Exchange

    Private equity firm plans to float 12.5 per cent of shares

  • Commercial Bank of Qatar plans $500m bond

    Bond issue to have a tenor of five years

  • Commercial Bank of Qatar to raise up to $1bn through bond

    Institution to price issue at 275 basis points above Libor

  • Construction begins on $600m Yemeni real estate project

    Al Yemania Al Qatariah Real Estate Investment & Development Company will begin construction work on 2 November on the first phase of its $600m Al Rayyan Hills real estate development in Sanaa.

  • Construction completed on final Red Line Metro stations

    The construction of the final 19 stations on the current length of Dubai Metro's Red Line has been completed, the Roads and Transport Authority has said. The stations, which are due to begin opening in February next year, still have some electromechanical work that needs to be completed prior to that date. The metro opened in September with only 10 stations ready in time. The Green Line is due to begin operations during mid 2010, although the Purple Line has been put on hold due to the econom

  • Construction to begin on Qatar-Bahrain causeway in 2010

    Contractors in final discussions for design and construction costs

  • Consumer prices in Emirates decrease

    Cost of clothing and houses declines

  • Contractors prepare bids for Saudi Aramco bulk plant

    Winning company to build tanks, petrol pumps and substations

  • Contractors submit bids for Oman ferry terminal

    New terminal will be built near Muscat at Seeb

  • Contractors submit bids for railway station at Doha airport

    Steering committee set to award deal in mid-December

  • DAE Capital agrees IAE A320 engine deal

    The aircraft leasing and financial business arm of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, DAE Capital, has signed an agreement with International Aero Engines, a consortium led by Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney, to buy v2500 Selectone engines to power 20 new A320 Airbus aircraft. According to the $340m agreement, delivery of the engines would start in 2011, the firm said in a statement. The 20 aircraft are part of a 70-aircraft order the leasing company announced in July 2008.

  • DAE delivers second Boeing to Garuda

    DAE Capital, the aircraft leasing and financial business arm of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE), has said it has delivered the second Boeing 737-800 Next-Generation aircraft to the national flag carrier of Indonesia, Garuda. The aircraft is one of eight new B737-800 aircraft to be delivered to Garuda between June 2009 and April 2010.

  • Danieli wins contract to build Hadeed steel plant

    Project will make Saudi steel producer self-sufficient

  • Debt storm threatens Dubai’s ambitions

    Dubai World’s call for a debt standstill has been likened to the Lehman Brothers collapse of September 2008. Dubai’s global ambitions are in question

  • Desertec consortium to develop Sahara solar power scheme

    Project to supply 15 per cent of Europe’s power by 2050

  • Developers sign Salalah power and water contract

    Demand for electricity in Dhofar is expected to double

  • D-Link unveils add-in for Windows home server

    Network solutions provider D-Link Middle East has released the D-ViewCam Add-in for Microsoft Windows Home Server, a software application that, when paired with a home server, lets users quickly and easily manage and access D-Link's home security cameras from any computer with a web browser, the company said in a statement. Windows Home Server offers automatic backup, system restore, and enhanced data protection, remote access, centralized storage and sharing of files, the ability to increase

  • Dodsal bids low for Abu Dhabi nitrogen pipeline deal

    Engineering firm bids $60m for construction contract

  • Doosan bids low for Ain Sokhna steam power plant package

    South Korean contractor opens branch in Cairo

  • Dr Nabil Ibrahim, Chancellor, Abu Dhabi University

    Dr Nabil Ibrahim, Chancellor, Abu Dhabi University talks to Phil Blizzard about their contribution to the development of the emirate, diversification in funding and the opportunities for partnerships and their goal for academic excellence.

  • Drake & Scull buys German wastewater treatment firm

    Dubai contractor plans to expand in the region

  • Dubai Airshow 2009 - an optimistic take off

    The 11th edition of the Dubai Airshow is the largest to date and has opened with a mood of optimism. Phil Blizzard reports on what can be expected within the exhibition pavilions and from those magnificent men in their flying machines with the daily flying displays over the Dubai Airport Expo.

  • Dubai Airshow launches with 890 exhibitors

    As the Dubai Airshow kicks off today, it is widely expected that the deals at this year's event will pale in comparison to the previous show in 2007, which saw over $155bn worth of orders during the five days that it ran. Still, the event remains one of the largest of its kind in the world, with 890 companies from 47 countries exhibiting at this year's show, an increase over 2007 when it attracted 850 exhibitors.

  • Dubai debt restructuring will hit businesses, claims Barclays

    State set to offer less support to firms after Dubai World announcement

  • Dubai driving process changes mooted

    Under a proposal by Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), the process for training young drivers and maintaining standards for professionals would undergo sweeping changes, The National has reported. Lorry, bus and taxi drivers who suffer from chronic illnesses and other health issues would be required to receive official permission to drive and to submit health examination results every five years, while drivers under 21 would fall under a provisional licensing regime mandating yearly

  • Dubai economy to grow 3 per cent in 2010

    UK bank forecasts return to growth after 1 per cent contraction in 2009

  • Dubai expects new airport to bring economic boost

    With passenger traffic at the Dubai International Airport on track to pass 40 million this year, boosting capacity is a key driver behind the development of a new airport in the emirate, but it is not the only factor behind the project, Dubai aviation officials say.

  • Dubai Global Village opens

    Dubai's Global Village has announced that it will opens its gates today, running for the next 98 days spanning Eid, National Day, Christmas and the retail season in February, Emirates Business has reported. The cultural and entertainment event will begin its 14th edition with the participation of more than 45 different cultures within 31 pavilions. Doors open at 4pm and remain open till midnight except on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays when it is extended until 1am. Mondays are allotted for

  • Dubai is the world’s worst performing property market

    Prices could fall more in 2010 as debt crisis deepens

  • Dubai Metro completes construction, set in Feb

    The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced through an inspection tour that all construction works on the 19 stations on the Red Line of Dubai Metro have been completed, with electromechanical works in the said stations range from 80 to 97%. RTA ha said it is all set in the next phase opening of the stations in February 2010.

  • Dubai metro nears 3m passengers

    The number of passengers using Dubai metro is about 40% higher than had been expected prior to the launch of the rail service, the Roads and Transport Authority has said. Nearly three million passengers have used the metro in its first two months at an average of 57,000 trips per day, said Peyman Parham, Director of Marketing and Corporate Communications, RTA. Some days the numbers are as high as 90,000 to 100,000, he added. "The daily number has been lower on week days and higher on weekends

  • Dubai metro passenger tally tops 2.5m

    The Dubai Metro has served over 2.5 million passengers since launching operations on September 9, Gulf News has reported, citing a Roads and Transport Authority official. Ramadan Abdullah, director of operations at the agency, said the service is averaging 57,000 passengers per day.

  • Dubai Metro tops 3m passengers

    Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has said the Dubai Metro has carried 3,492,175 passengers in two months from the start of operation on 10 stations on the Red Line from September 9 up to November 9. The highest number of passengers was recorded in Mall of the Emirates Station during the two-month period.

  • Dubai raises $5bn using bond issue

    National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Al-Hilal Bank provide money

  • Dubai repays $1bn aviation authority sukuk

    Dubai's Department of Finance said it had repaid a $1bn Islamic bond, or sukuk, from the emirate's civil aviation authority which matured on Nov 4. 'This comes after the government of Dubai issued a two-tranche, $1.93bn sukuk on October 28, 2009, following a highly successful international roadshow which generated a large order book with over 300 investors placing orders in excess of $6.3bn equivalent,' the department said in a statement.

  • Dubai tenders floating ferry terminal contract

    Deira City Centre project will connect to metro station and bus stops

  • Dubai to launch Nol Blue Card this week

    The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) plans to launch the Nol Blue Card this week which targets commuters who use public transport modes frequently and need to recharge their balances, Khaleej Times has reported. Metro and public transport users can apply for the card as of this week either online through Nol Card portal or ticket offices at the Metro stations, the RTA said. The card is valid for use on all integrated public transport modes in Dubai and can be recharged through any channel

  • Dubai World to ask for more time to pay debts

    Government to restructure holding company

  • EFG-Hermes reports 7.8 per cent fall in profits

    Decrease in fee and commission income hits Egyptian bank

  • Egypt applies for Arabic domain name

    Tarek Kamel, Egypt's information technology minister has said that the country had filed an application to register the domain '.masr', written entirely in Arabic, the Associated Press has reported. The move will make the internet accessible to the millions in the region unable to access an internet dominated by Latin characters, he said.

  • Egypt cancels El Wadi Cement licence

    The production licence for Egypt-based El Wadi Cement has been cancelled by the country's licensing committee due to start-up delays, Reuters has reported. The committee will decide within two weeks whether to cancel the licences of four more firms, according to the head of the Industrial Development Authority. The four cement companies include al-Arabiya al-Wataniya, El-Nahda Industries, North Sinai Cement and Assiut Cement, the local affiliate of Mexican company Cemex.

  • Egypt invites India to build industrial zone

    The Egyptian government has offered to let India build an industrial zone in the Suez development area for setting up joint ventures with Egyptian companies, India's Economic Times has reported. The Suez development area, located on the north-west coast of the Gulf of Suez, has less bureaucratic barriers to business formation and provides tax incentives. Indian companies have invested about $750m in 40 projects in Egypt.

  • Egypt may see no drop in tourism in 2009, says official

    The tourism industry in Egypt is beginning to turn around after a slow beginning this year, and the country is close to seeing no drop in tourism compared to a year ago, said Hisham Zaazou, senior assistant to the Minister of Tourism. Revenues and the number of visitors from last year are expected to be the same this year, as the effect of the crisis appears to be less severe than expected, he was quoted as saying by Daily News Egypt. Currently, the Egyptian tourism industry is 4-5% below las

  • Egypt to tender new terminal in 2010

    The Egyptian Transport Ministry has said a tender will be issued next year to build a third container terminal at East Port Said on the Mediterranean as part of a plan to boost the port's container capacity to 8 and 13 million TEUs by 2030, Reuters has reported. East Port Said has one terminal operating now, handling 2.4 million twenty-foot equivalent units in 2008, roughly 40% of Egypt's total container traffic of 6.08 million TEUs.

  • Egypt tourism numbers down

    The Egyptian ministry of tourism has said that the number of tourists visiting Egypt in the first ten months of 2009 dropped 4.5% compared to the same period last year, Reuters has reported. About 10.9 million tourists visited Egypt in the first ten months of this year, spending nearly 106.3 million room nights, the ministry said. The ministry expects total arrivals for the year to fall between two and three percent versus 2008, less than it had previously feared, a ministry spokeswoman said.

  • Egypt: Health insurance systems

    Supply of goods and provision of related and consultancy services for a health insurance systems development project. Closing date: not stated

  • Egypt: Wastewater treatment plant project

    Carrying out a wastewater treatment plant project. Closing date: not stated

  • Egypt: Watershed management project

    Supply of goods, carrying out works and provision of related and consultancy services as part of a watershed management project (general procurement notice). Closing date: not stated

  • Egyptian economy grows 4.9 per cent

    Central bank maintains current interest rates

  • Emal's smelter to begin in December

    Emirates Aluminium (Emal), the world's biggest single aluminium smelter, has announced that it will begin production next month, Reuters has reported. The $5.7bn project, located at Al Taweelah in Abu Dhabi, will have a full production capacity of 700,000 tonnes of aluminium per year from the first phase, expected to be reached by December 2010.

  • Embraer moots MidEast depot

    Brazil-based Embraer, the world's third largest aircraft manufacturer, has said that it will decide in the first half of 2010 whether to shift its spare parts depot from the French capital, Paris to the Middle East region, Aviation Week has reported. The new warehouse will serve four air carriers which are currently operating Embraer commercial aircraft, including Royal Jordanian Airlines (RJ), Egyptair, Saudia and Nasair. Candidate locations include Dubai, Doha, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi, VP for

  • EMEA PC shipments down 9.3%

    Krishna Murthy, Managing Director, Acer Computer for Middle East and Africa, has said that total personal computer shipments for the Europe, Middle East and Africa in the third quarter this year had dropped by 9.3%, Emirates Business has reported. Desktop sales had dropped 25%, while notebook sales grew by more than 10% and a major part came from netbooks, he said. The decline in sales had resulted in nearly 20% to 30% drop in revenues for PC makers in the Middle East and Africa region, he no

  • Emirates' A380 to fly to Paris one month early

    Emirates Airline has announced that it will serve Paris with the A380 superjumbo from 29th December, one month earlier than planned. The airline had previously announced that the aircraft would head to Paris Charles de Gaulle from 1st February next year, but an operational review, coupled with demand on the route, has led to an earlier introduction, the carrier said. The 489-seat aircraft will be incorporated into Emirates' double daily flights to Paris. It will initially service three of the

  • Emirates bank exposure to Saudi groups is $2.9bn

    Institution says provisions for exposure must be made by the end of 2009

  • Emirates boss says airline will not be affected by debt crisis

    The president of Emirates Airlines said The Dubai business community was 'shocked' by the debt crisis which has struck the emirate, Emirates Airline President Tim Clark told the Sunday Telegraph newspaper. 'We are all a bit shocked by what's happened and the global fall-out of the past 24 hours,' he said. 'But Dubai will navigate itself out of this, as will we. I am confident that the airline will not be affected by this.'

  • Emirates central bank supports local institutions

    Bank holds talks with Dubai government over restructuring debt

  • Emirates expands Asia Pacific operations

    Emirates Airline has announced plans to expand its footprint in Asia/Pacific from December 2009 by introducing a fourth daily service to Bangkok, a third daily service to Sydney, two additional flights to Manila and one additional service to Jakarta. The airline will add a total of 17 weekly flights between December 2009 and January 2010, representing a 13% growth in seat capacity. After the increase, Emirates Asia Pacific operation will go up to 187 weekly flights.

  • Emirates firm bids low for Hassyan power plant work

    PMDC prices contract at $5m

  • Emirates forced to hike business fares on German routes

    Emirates airline was forced by the German government to raise the price of its business fares on routes out of Germany to destinations in Asia and South Africa, The Financial Times has reported. Due to the 'imminent threat of significant fines', the airline has said it was forced to increase business fares on routes including Frankfurt to Johannesburg, and Hamburg to Singapore by as much as 20%. A letter was sent to Emirates by the Federal Office for Goods Transport, wherein Emirates was told

  • Emirates increases flights to Amman and Doha

    Airline now offers 201 weekly flights to Middle East destinations

  • Emirates increases Middle East flights

    Emirates Airline has announced plans to launch three more flights per week to Amman, Jordan beginning December 1. The Dubai-based carrier is also adding an extra flight to Doha, Qatar from the same date, bringing the airline's total number of flights per week to Middle Eastern destinations from 197 to 201.

  • Emirates inks GE engine repair MoU

    Emirates Airline has signed a memorandum of understanding with GE Aviation, an operating unit of General Electric, to enhance Emirate's repair and testing capabilities on GE90 engines. Under the agreement, Emirates will perform engine module and piece-part breakdown on GE90-115B engines in the region along with GE90-115B engine testing at its Engine Test Facility, while GE will ensure that the carrier has the necessary material and manpower support.

  • Emirates inks Goodrich MRO letter of intent

    Emirates Airline has signed a letter of intent with US-based Goodrich Corporation for the group to become the exclusive provider of evacuation system maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for the airline's fleet of 58 Airbus A380 aircraft. A 12-year agreement is expected to be signed shortly. The work will be performed by Goodrich's MRO campus in Dubai.

  • Emirates IPO 'in two to three years'

    Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman of Emirates Airline has said the carrier may be ready to launch an initial public offering in two to three years, Bloomberg has reported. 'Because the market is going towards growth, within two to three years from now would be excellent,' he said, adding that any decision on the matter would rest with the government. In the six months to September, the group's sales fell 13.5% on lower passenger and cargo yields, forcing cost cuts in order to increa

  • Emirates may order more planes

    Emirates Airline may need to buy more planes from Airbus and Boeing as its current fleet is operating 'flat out' and existing orders have been allocated to new services, President Tim Clark said in an interview with Bloomberg. 'We're sounding out who's got more just in case we decide to go ahead,' Clark told the news service. 'The fleet order we have in place is probably not as big as it needs to be.'

  • Emirates power demand grows

    Abu Dhabi shows strongest consumption in 2009

  • Emirates profit up 165% in six months

    Emirates airline has 165% increase in net profits during the first six months ending in 30th September 2009. The airline group has made Dhs752m compared to Dhs284m net profits for the same period in 2008. The airline has reported carrying over 13 million passengers and over 700,000 tonnes of cargo during the period.

  • Emirates to fly to Tokyo

    Emirates Airline has announced plans to launch services to its second destination in Japan with flights to Tokyo beginning March 28, 2010. The carrier, which currently flies daily to Osaka, will fly non-stop to Tokyo five times a week on every Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Tokyo will be Emirates' 102nd international destination.

  • Emirates to reinstate A380 on NY route

    Richard Vaughan, Emirates Airline's senior VP commercial operations worldwide has said the carrier will resume its A380 service from Dubai to New York next year. 'The service will go back later next year because we have seen that demand is starting to come back. The last 12 months have been challenging but we have had a successful first half of the year.' Vaughan told a World Travel Market audience, according to website Travelmole.com.

  • Empire Aviation sales of private jets soar in Dubai

    A one-stop-shop for business jets, Empire Aviation Group, Dubai, describes its operations as being from sales of executive jets to charter flights, from maintenance to flight management. Phil Blizzard talks to Steve Hartley, Executive Director, about its operations and how this sector of aviation is growing.

  • Energoprojekt bids low for Emirates power grid work

    Serbian company waiting for Dewa to announce Hassyan project winner

  • EPI to supply metal components to Airbus

    Emirates Precision Industries (EPI) has said it will be supplying Airbus with machined metallic components for all Airbus programmes, WAM has reported. The company, a subsidiary of Tawazun Holding Company of the Offset Program Bureau (OPB), and Airbus, have signed the agreement to allow EPI to start to supply the metallic components.

  • Etihad awards cabin refurbishment, upgrade deal

    Etihad Airways has awarded Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies (ADAT) contracts to upgrade seating and in-flight entertainment (IFE) systems in the airline's fleet of six Boeing B777 aircraft and 10 of the airline's Airbus A320s. The cabins of the Airbus A320s will be completely refurbished to the latest Etihad's specifications, while the Boeing B777 retrofit programme involves replacing and reconfiguring economy class seats as well as upgrading existing IFE to the Thales i5000 system.

  • Etihad buys Kronos management system

    Etihad Airways has said that it has signed an agreement with Kronos, a workforce management software provider, to automate and optimize planning and management processes for its 3,900 cabin and flight crew members. The new crew planning software system, which includes Altitude Pairing, Altitude Rostering, and Altitude Insight solutions, will enable the carrier to better manage and deploy its crew resources and build more efficient and cost effective crew schedules.

  • Etihad CEO talks about the shifting aviation landscape

    James Hogan, CEO, Etihad Airways talks to Phil Blizzard on how the airline's operations are changing - with an increase in outsourcing, the advantages the management of 'new wave' airlines have over the 'legacy' operators and how the load factors are moving in an evolving network. Also the importance of winng the award as 'Worlds Leading Airline'.

  • Etihad inks codeshare deal with UK's Flybe

    Etihad Airways has inked a new codeshare agreement with UK-based airline, Flybe. Etihad will place its two-letter 'EY' code on a number of services operated by Flybe between Paris, Frankfurt and Manchester and 35 regional airports within the UK, while Flybe will place its 'BE' code on Etihad's flights between the same three destinations and its Abu Dhabi home base. This agreement will give Etihad customers access to several regional airports in the UK, including Southampton, Birmingham and Be

  • Etihad predicts revenues will hit $3bn in '09

    Etihad Airways has forecast that its revenues for this year will be about $3bn and that it will post its first-ever profit in 2011, its CEO said today at the Dubai Airshow. James Hogan said the Abu Dhabi-based airline was forced to delay its projected target for profitability by a year due to 'yield pressure' from the global financial downturn and the swine flu crisis.

  • Etihad to fly to Hyderabad

    Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has announced the launch of a new route to its latest destination in India, the city of Hyderabad. Etihad is the first airline to operate flights between Abu Dhabi and the state capital of Andhra Pradesh. Initially operating four flights a week, Etihad will increase to daily from the start of 2010. Etihad now flies to seven Indian destinations including the cities of New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. In total the airline now op

  • Etihad ups Frankfurt flights

    The national airline of the UAE, Etihad Airways has said its Abu Dhabi-Frankfurt services will be increased from 10 to 13 per week from December 12, increasing to a double flights daily from March 28, 2010. The airline operates a three cabin A330-200 aircraft between Abu Dhabi and Frankfurt, configured to carry 10 passengers in first class, 26 passengers in business class and 164 passengers in economy class.

  • Etisalat launches pocket 3.5G modem

    Etisalat has launched the HSPA-WiFi Modem, a mobile broadband service that lets customers simultaneously connect up to five Wi-Fi-enabled products using one SIM card. Operating over the telcos 3.5G network, the Dhs749 Pocket HSPA-Wi-Fi modem supports a maximum downlink speed of up to 7.2 Mbps, and a maximum uplink speed of up to 5.76 Mbps. The service is available via subscription to one of Etisalat's current data packages.

  • Eurofighter's awesome power thrills Dubai Airshow

    Watch the awesome capabilities of the most advanced combat aircraft in the world as displayed by Squadron Leader Scott Loughran, who put the Eurofighter Typhoon through breathtaking and ear shattering manoeuvres in the daily flying displays. Phil Blizzard, at the Dubai Airshow, spoke to the pilot about life in the cockpit in this state of the art aircraft.

  • Export credit agencies to confirm funding for Egyptian refinery

    Government agencies close to agreeing funding package

  • ExxonMobil and Shell to develop Iraqi oil field

    Ministry awards 20-year West Qurna contract

  • Falling Abu Dhabi cement prices expected to continue

    Prices of Portland cement and sulphate-resistant cement in Abu Dhabi fell almost 7% in October when compared to September, due to falling demand. Al Etihad Portland Cement, which was selling for Dhs330 in late September was priced at Dhs305 a month later, while prices for Al Etihad sulphate-resistant cement fell from Dhs340 to Dhs315 over the same period. Prices are expected to fall further, as there has been no increase in demand and officials told Emirates Business 24/7 that it is likely to

  • FEB to build Saudi polysilicon plant

    Bahrain-headquartered First Energy Bank (FEB) and Project Management and Development Co. (PMD) have announced the establishment of a polysilicon production facility in Saudi Arabia. Located in Al Jubail Industrial City 2, the project will have a total production capacity of 7,500 tons per annum of high quality polysilicon product, which is used in the production of solar panels. The plant is expected to start production in 2013.

  • Firms line up for Abu Dhabi nitrogen pipeline deal

    Engineering companies value contract at up to $150m

  • Firms line up for Zakum dredging management work

    Zadco plans to boost Abu Dhabi’s offshore oil production

  • Firms to bid for hotel work at Abu Dhabi exhibition centre

    Resort will be part of the Capital District mixed-use development

  • First Doubletree agreement signed in Saudi

    Saudi Arabia-based Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Almousa Trading Group has signed a management agreement with Hilton Worldwide for the first Doubletree by Hilton in the kingdom. Located in Al Khobar, the hotel will feature 244 guest rooms and 60 suites, as well as four food and beverage outlets, a lobby lounge and a juice and snack bar, banqueting and meetings facilities, a business centre, a health club and a swimming pool. The new Doubletree by Hilton - Al Khobar is set to open in the fourth quarter

  • First Wyndham hotel to open in Middle East

    US-based Wyndham Hotels and Resorts has signed an agreement to operate the first Wyndham brand hotel in the Middle East. The 210-room 15-storey upscale hotel will be developed by Rayada Investment Co. in the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The hotel is expected to open during the third quarter of 2011.

  • Five hotel openings planned by 2011 on Palm Jumeirah

    Dubai-based developer, Nakheel has said that at least five hotels will open on Palm Jumeirah by 2011. There are plans for 30 hotels to be built on the Palm, although many have been delayed due to the economic crisis. This includes the postponement of the high-profile Trump Towers, which now has no firm date for when work will begin. "A number of hotels on Palm Jumeirah's crescent and trunk are currently under construction, including Fairmont Hotel & Residences, Royal Amwaj and Oceana's Movenp

  • Flydubai increases destinations

    Low-cost carrier Flydubai has announced that it is expanding its route network to Bahrain, marking the carrier's second destination in the GCC and tenth overall. The double daily service will begin on December 13, the airline's CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said today at the Dubai Airshow, and ticket prices will begin at Dhs250 one way.

  • Flydubai inks logistics agreement

    Dubai's first low cost carrier, Flydubai has signed an agreement with Danzas AEI Emirates, a joint venture between Al Tayer Group and DHL. Under the accord, Danzas will coordinate all Flydubai's logistics requirements. Danzas has facilities in Dubai Cargo Village, Dubai Airport Free Zone, Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai Investment Park and Sharjah, and provides transport by ocean, road and air as well as warehousing and distribution services.

  • FlyDubai offers flights to Nepal

    Airline adds Kathmandu to network

  • Flydubai on $160m financing deal and the first six months

    Ghaith al Ghaith, CEO, Flydubai talks to Phil Blizzard about the two recent aircraft finance deals, worth $160 million, that the carrier has concluded - including their Islamic financing deal with Dubai Islamic Bank. He also talks about their first six months in operation with an overview on load factors, the roll out of destinations and those which may be announced soon.

  • Flydubai signs $160m worth of financing deals

    Low-cost carrier Flydubai has announced two aircraft financing deals worth $160m on the second day of the 2009 Dubai Airshow. The financing covers the first two aircraft that the airline received in May and ensures that all six aircraft the carrier has received this year are fully funded.

  • Flydubai to fly to Nepal

    Low-cost carrier Flydubai has announced that it will launch flights to Nepal from December 15. The route will be the carrier's eleventh overall. Last week the carrier announced that it will begin double daily service to Bahrain from December 13.

  • Flydubai to launch service to Azerbaijan

    Low-cost airline Flydubai has announced that it will expand its network into the former Soviet Union for the first time on Friday, November 20, when it commences flights to the Azeri capital, Baku. Flydubai's CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, adds a new dimension to flydubai's network. 'Baku is our first route into Asia and a prime opportunity because of its rapid expansion as a business and tourism centre. There is currently only one other airline operating direct

  • Foaming plant opens in Saudi Arabia

    Saudi Arabia-based Coldstores Group has launched the world's largest foaming plant in the kingdom, Arab News has reported. The plant, which is equipped with a panel manufacturing machine that was designed by Germany-based Krauss Maffei, produces insulated panels and high-quality multipurpose shelters.

  • Fortis aviator watches on a Mars mission

    Aerobatic pilots, like those at the Dubai Airshow, along with astronauts are subjected to massive forces and so are their timepieces. Phil Blizzard talks to Max Peter, Fortis Watches about the inner workings of these watches, as well as the newly launched Mars 500.

  • Four Seasons looks to open in Dubai

    Four Seasons is planning to open a hotel in Dubai and is said to be in talks with developers, The National has reported. The hotel does not have any hotels in the UAE and is also looking at opportunities to expand into Abu Dhabi. The hotel has an earlier planned project with Al Futtaim Group, in 2004 to build the Four Seasons Hotel Dubai at Festival City, but is being re-evaluated.

  • French firm wins Iraq airport contract

    Iraq's transport ministry has awarded Aeroports de Paris, a France-based airport operator, a $42.5m contract to work on plans for a new international airport in Baghdad, Reuters has reported. The new airport, which will be built between the three provinces of Kerbala, Najaf and Hilla, is scheduled to be ready within three to five years, with an initial capacity of five million passengers per year and eventual capacity of 35 million per year, the ministry said.

  • Fujairah plans business terminal

    Dr Khaled Almazroui, General Manager of Fujairah International Airport has announced plans to open an executive business jet terminal with five-star facilities and dedicated aircraft parking by mid next year, Emirates Business has reported. The terminal will be able to accommodate about four aircraft at a time, and will have separate immigration and passport control sections, as well as a VIP access, he said. The airport has entered into an agreement with an Australian company to manage the t

  • Fujairah to build new airport cargo village

    Fujairah International Airport is set to launch a new cargo village that will increase its handling capacity from the existing 40,000 tons per year to nearly 200,000 tons. "We are working right now on selecting the consultant and design, and work will start next year," Dr Khaled Almazroui, the airport's General Manager told Emirates Business 24/7. The new cargo village will be built to handle anywhere between 150,000 to 200,000 tons of cargo per year and will be fully automated.

  • FutureBrand: UAE to become top destination

    According to the Country Brand Index, compiled by brand consultancy FutureBrand, The UAE, is one of three nations likely to become top tourism destinations in the next five years, Emirates Business has reported. China and Vietnam are also listed. The index is based on a survey of about 3,000 business and leisure travellers from nine countries, with the USA, Canada and Australia named as the top three destinations this year.

  • GAC ties up with Pole Position Spitsbergen

    GAC Group has announced its alliance with Pole Position Spitsbergen AS, establishing its base on the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The partnership is aimed at serving client needs, particularly those in the oil and gas sector. The company is also offering polar bear protection for vessels intending to berth outside of the island's settlements.

  • Galfar Engineering wins Ras al-Hadd airport work

    Omani contractor to build terminal building

  • Gaza/West Bank: Power transformers and switchgear

    Supply and installation of power transformers and associated switchgear, and protection and control equipment. Closing date: 21 November 2009

  • Gaza/West Bank: Renewable energy consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services comprising a renewable energy strategy study. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • GE delivers its 1000th GE90 engine to Emirates

    Emirates Airline has taken delivery of the 1000th GE90 engine from US-based GE Aviation. Emirates is the largest GE90 engine operator with 60 GE90-powered Boeing 777 in service and an additional 26 aircraft on order. The dual annular combustor emits no more than 40% of the hydrocarbons allowed by today's international standards, the company said in a statement.

  • Gecol invites Hyundai to build Tripoli West power plant

    Libya rolls five packages into one

  • Globalfoundries chief resigns

    The head of Abu Dhabi-controlled microchip maker Globalfoundries has resigned following media reports linking him to an insider-trading scandal, the National has reported. Hector Ruiz previously led the chip maker AMD, which spun off its manufacturing assets to create Globalfoundries this year. Ruiz's resignation is effective from January 4 but he will take leave of absence immediately, the company said in a statement.

  • Goodrich wins Flydubai wheels, brakes deal

    US-based Goodrich's Aircraft Wheels & Brakes business has been selected by Flydubai to supply wheels and carbon brakes for their 54 Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 aircraft, the group has announced, in a deal expected to generate up to $22m in revenue over the life of the contract, including aftermarket support. Aircraft deliveries with the wheel and brake equipment are expected to begin in March 2010 and continue through 2013.

  • Goodrich wins Flydubai wheels, brakes deal

    US-based Goodrich's Aircraft Wheels & Brakes business has been selected by Flydubai to supply wheels and carbon brakes for their 54 Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 aircraft, the group has announced, in a deal expected to generate up to $22m in revenue over the life of the contract, including aftermarket support. Aircraft deliveries with the wheel and brake equipment are expected to begin in March 2010 and continue through 2013.

  • Google unveils Chrome

    Internet search giant, Google has unveiled its open-source Chrome Operating System which will initially be available on netbooks only, according to Computer Business Review website. The browser-based OS will enable users to access all the usual online applications, such as email, social network sites like Twitter and Facebook and Google Docs with users' data being stored on Google's servers. Google has released an early version of the code to developers to work on is looking for feedback from

  • Gulf Air prepares workforce cuts

    According to a three-year rescue plan presented to Bahrain's parliament by Gulf Air, the carrier expects to post a BD189m ($501m) loss this year, Gulf Daily News has reported. Chairman of the financial and economic affairs committee, MP Abduljalil Khalil told the newspaper that plans include workforce cuts that could start within a few months. 'Considering that Gulf Air has a 60% expatriate workforce and 40% Bahrainis, expatriates will be the first to be removed. They will then be followed b

  • Gulf Air to focus on shorter routes

    Samer Majali, CEO of Gulf Air, has said the carrier plans to shift its order book from wide-body to narrow-body planes and regional jets, as it realigns its network to focus on shorter routes, Reuters has reported. The airline will cancel 15 routes and open 20 new ones as part of a new strategy to increase traffic in the Middle East, he said. Gulf Air has up to 20 Boeing 787s on order, as well as 15 Airbus A320s and 20 Airbus A330s, a wide-body aircraft.

  • Gulf Cement 9-month profit drops 47%

    UAE-based Gulf Cement has announced that its nine-month profit declined 47% as operating income dropped. Net income fell to Dhs107.4m ($29m), from Dhs202.5m in the year-earlier period, the company said today.

  • Gulf Finance House completes $300m rights issue

    Bahraini institution’s strategy is to become Islamic investment bank

  • Gulf Finance House raises $100m from Deutsche Bank

    Bahrain-based bank still faces $300m refinancing challenge in February

  • Gulf healthcare at a crossroad

    Spending on health is starting to rocket in the Gulf. New strategies are needed, but insurance is not the answer

  • Gulf International Bank offers initial pricing for Saudi bond

    Bahraini bank sets debt pricing at 130 to 140 basis points

  • Gulf International Bank postpones note issue after Dubai debt freeze

    Ratings agency downgrades Dubai firms

  • Gulf International Bank reports $2.3m profit

    Government-owned bank makes $41.6m writedowns

  • Gulf International Bank sells $533m bond

    Issue more than three times oversubscribed

  • Gulf International Bank to issue bond

    GCC-owned bank to seek Saudi bond investors

  • Gulf Navigation to expand tanker fleet

    Gulf Navigation Holding (Gulfnav) is in talks with an unnamed company to buy four petrochemical carriers as it looks to expand its fleet of tankers via acquisitions and new manufacturing. The company, which currently owns 15 tankers, has suffered a torrid year, with a 91% fall in nine-month profits. But Abdullah Al Shuraim, the Chairman of Gulf Navigation Holding, said the company is in late-stage talks to buy a further four petrochemical tankers. "The board has instructed the executive comm

  • Gulf Projects 19 November 2009: Index falls 1.6 per cent

    The value of projects in the region is now $2.65bn

  • Gulf Projects 2 November 2009: Index rises 0.4 per cent

    The MEED Projects index rose by 0.4 per cent to cross the $2.69 trillion level in the week ending 2 November.

  • Gulf Projects 23 November 2009: Index grows 0.8 per cent

    The MEED Projects grew by just 0.8 per cent in the week to 23 November despite an 11.7 per cent increase in the value of projects planned and under way in Qatar

  • Gulf Projects 30 November 2009: Index lose 0.2 per cent

    The MEED Projects fell by 0.2 per cent in the week to 30 November as activity slowed while the region celebrated Eid al-Adha.

  • Gulf Projects 9 November 2009: Index falls 0.4 per cent

    The MEED Projects index fell 0.4 per cent in the week to 9 November to $2.69 trillion.

  • Heritage Oil cancels merger with Genel Energy

    UK firm raises doubts over Kurdistan export payment mechanism

  • Heritage Oil starts Kurdistan drilling work

    UK firm plans to produce 4 billion barrels a day of oil in Miran West 2

  • HH Mohammed Omar Abdullah, Dept of Economic Development, Abu Dhabi

    HH Mohammed Omar Abdullah, Undersecretary, Dept of Economic Development, Abu Dhabi talks to Phil Blizzard on the need of the private sector to lead the Emirate in its 2030 diversification plans and why this is necessary despite Abu Dhabi’s enormous financial reserves.

  • Hilton to open further Mecca hotels

    Hilton Worldwide has announced plans to open more than one hotel in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, as more religious pilgrimages spur demand for accommodation in the kingdom, Bloomberg has reported. 'We don't have enough of a supply of hotel rooms,' Shuja Zaidi, Hilton's vice president of projects in Saudi Arabia. Jabal Omar Development Co., a real-estate developer in Mecca, is building 27 hotels with a combined 15,000 rooms, with the first to open in 2011.

  • Horizon Flight Academy expands pilot training

    Al Ain based Horizon International Flight Academy and part of Mubadala Aviation offers courses and training for in-flight crew and also ground based staff. Phil Blizzard talks with Mohammed Al Zaabi, GM, Horizon International Flight Academy on what it takes to be a commercial aviator.

  • Hotel rates post big fall in Dubai and Abu Dhabi

    According to data from STR Global, hotels in Dubai posted the largest average daily rate (ADR) decrease in the Middle East in October, Emirates Business has reported. ADR fell 8.3% to $175.62 (Dhs644), while the next largest decrease, a drop of 6.8% to $200.50, was in Abu Dhabi. The main reason for the price drop was due to an increase in the supply of hotel rooms, the data showed.

  • IATA: Premium passenger numbers down

    The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said that demand for business and executive seats, the main driver of profitability for most airlines, had dropped in September despite an increase in overall passenger numbers, Reuters has reported. Business class demand was relatively stronger in much of Asia (excluding Japan) where economic growth is getting back on track, the international body said. Air passengers bought 1.2% more tickets in September than the same month period a yea

  • Iberdrola and Fisia bid low for Hassyan 1 power and water project

    Spanish and French firms team up for engineering, procurement and construction work

  • IBM, KACST ink multi-year deal

    Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) has signed a multi-year agreement with IBM Middle East for the collaboration on advancing machine translation technologies, advancing intellectual property development and establishing a National Women Software Development Centre. According to the agreement, KACST will purchase an IBM Blue Gene supercomputer to enable its researchers to perform complex simulations and computational modelling, while an IBM team will design,

  • IFA launches Dubai hotel shared ownership scheme

    Kuwait-based IFA Hotels and Resorts has launched its second hotel condominium ownership product in the Middle East, within the five-star Fairmont Palm Jumeirah hotel in Dubai. The concept allows investors to buy a fully furnished, five-star branded hotel room within a rental pool system. It guarantees annual returns of 10% per year for the first five years, and a guaranteed buy back premium of 10% after five years from the hotel's opening. Additionally, owners can stay in the hotel for up to

  • IHG opens two hotels in Abu Dhabi

    InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has opened two new hotels in Abu Dhabi, a Crowne Plaza hotel and Staybridge Suites, its first extended stay property in the Gulf region. The Staybridge Suites Abu Dhabi is located in the centre of Yas Island and offers a choice of 164 suites, ranging from studios to two bedroom suites, all with fully equipped kitchens and access to a 24-hour convenience store. Located on the banks of the Yas Creek, the 428-room Crowne Plaza Abu Dhabi is the second Crowne Pl

  • Indian firm to build $400m soda plant in Oman

    India's Oswal Group Global plans to build a caustic soda plant in Oman's southern port city of Salalah, Reuters has reported. Feasibility study for the $400m plant has been completed and construction of the plant is expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2010, the firm said.

  • Intel Capital invests in Jebel Ali-based NeuString

    Intel Capital has made a $25m investments in 10 companies worldwide, which include Jebel Ali-based NeuString, Gulf News has reported. Incorporated in 2008, NeuString makes software that analyses pricing for telecommunications companies. The investment will be used for sales and marketing as well as new product development, the company said.

  • Investcorp to manage $310m funds

    Mandates from US institutional investors in 2009 totals $1bn

  • IPIC eyes European takeovers

    Khadem al-Qubaisi, managing director of Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC) has announced that the firm is negotiating the takeover of five companies including Bayer's MaterialScience division, Reuters has reported. IPIC expects to close a European acquisition by the first quarter of 2010, he said. 'It's a big deal. We're looking to buy a very big petrochemical company in Europe. It's in petrochemicals and specialities also. Bayer MaterialScience is one of the companies

  • Iran approaches contractors over South Pars drilling work

    Project covers offshore oil and gas wells

  • Iran opens gem cutting plant

    Iran's first gem cutting and polishing plant has been commissioned in the city of Shahroud, Semnan Province, Mehr news agency has reported, citing the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB). The factory has been built at the cost of $1.2m, IRIB said.

  • Iran restarts talks with Oman on Kish gas development

    Financing issues delay project by one year

  • Iran: Butterfly valves

    Supply of butterfly valves. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Iran: Carbon ferro-manganese

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

  • Iran: Chemical materials

    Supply of chemical materials. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Iran: Control valve parts

    Supply of spare parts for control valves. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Iran: Dehydrogenation catalyst

    Supply of ISO-butane dehydrogenation catalyst. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Iran: Gunning machine

    Supply of a gunning machine. Closing date: 13 January 2010

  • Iran: Hydro-treating catalyst

    Supply of hydro-treating catalyst. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Industrial research unit study

    Carrying out studies to assess the possibility of the construction of a pilot unit for researching industrial absorbent. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Isomerisation catalyst

    Supply of NC4 isomerisation catalyst. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Iran: Land management consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services for land management reform. Closing date: 26 November 2009

  • Iran: Metallic sand

    Supply of metallic sand. Closing date: 19 December 2009

  • Iran: Methyl cyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl

    Supply of methyl cyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl. Closing date: 2 December 2009

  • Iran: Natural gas storage aquifer

    Development of an aquifer in the south of Tehran for the storage of natural gas. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Oil and gas well drilling

    Provision of exploration, production and development services for the drilling of oil and gas wells. Closing date: 1 December 2009

  • Iran: Printing and design services

    Provision of complex printing and design services. Closing date: 29 November 2009

  • Iran: Satellite space

    Rental of satellite space for broadcasting a television channel. Closing date: 19 December 2009

  • Iran: Sewage treatment plant construction

    Construction of a sewage treatment plant. Closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Iran: Sodium salt

    Supply of sodium salt (EDTA). Closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Iran: Titania-based catalyst

    Supply of promoted titania-based catalyst. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Titanium dioxide

    Supply of titanium dioxide. Closing date: 8 November 2009

  • Iran: Torque control system

    Supply of a computerised torque control system. Closing date: 30 December 2009

  • Iran: Vessel hiring

    Hiring of two platform supply vessels. Closing date: not stated

  • Iran: Wire line accessories

    Supply of wire line accessories. Closing date: not stated

  • Iraq awards Zubair oil deal

    Eni, Occidental Petroleum and Korea Gas secure Basra field licence

  • Iraq delays oil deals

    Contracts cover development of Zubair and West Qurna fields

  • Iraq ready to sign oil deal with Japanese firms

    Contract covers short-term development of Nasiriyah field

  • Iraq signs $15bn Rumaila deal with oil firms

    BP and China National Petroleum Corporation secure 20-year contract

  • Iraq to approve oil field deals

    Contracts cover development of Zubair and West Qurna fields

  • Iraq: Ambulances

    Supply of 10 ambulances. Closing date: 29 November 2009

  • Iraq: Armoured vehicles

    Supply of two armoured vehicles. Closing date: 30 November 2009

  • Iraq: Asphalt blowing unit

    Supply of an asphalt blowing unit with ancillaries for a refinery. Closing date: 2 February 2010

  • Iraq: Dam construction

    Construction of a dam. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Iraq: Distribution and substation project management

    Provision of distribution and substation project management services. Closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Iraq: Drilling rig equipment

    Supply of materials and equipment for drilling rigs. New closing date: 22 November 2009

  • Iraq: Electrical materials

    Supply of electrical materials. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • Iraq: Field instrumentation

    Supply of field instrumentation. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Iraq: Field instrumentation

    Supply of field instrumentation. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Iraq: Financial management project

    Provision of consultancy services for a public financial management project. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Iraq: Fire-fighting pumps

    Supply of diesel water pumps, electric water pumps and jocky pumps for fire-fighting. Closing date: 6 January 2010

  • Iraq: Fire-fighting system

    Design, supply and installation supervision of an automatic fire-fighting system. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Fuel tank cleaning trucks

    Supply of 21 fuel tank cleaning trucks. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • Iraq: Gables and machines

    Construction of gables and supply of machines. Closing date: 12 November 2009

  • Iraq: Gas turbine spares

    Supply of spare parts for gas turbines Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Iraq: Gasoline density analysers

    Supply of gasoline density analysers. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Grinding machine rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of. pendulum grinding machines. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Iraq: Head crane rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of head cranes. Closing date: 18 November 2009

  • Iraq: Head cranes

    Supply of head cranes. Closing date: 18 November 2009

  • Iraq: ICT elections support system audit

    Provision of an audit of ICT elections support systems. Closing date: 1 December 2009

  • Iraq: Instrument flow corrector upgrade

    Upgrading of six instrument flow correctors. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Legal database project

    Provision of services to complete phase 3 of the Iraqi legal database (ILD) project. New closing date: 17 December 2009

  • Iraq: Mobile maintenance workshops

    Supply of 16 mobile maintenance workshops. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Iraq: Motors and diodes

    Supply of motors and diodes. Closing date: 22 November 2009

  • Iraq: Oil products

    Supply by road of oil products. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Iraq: PABX and telephone system

    Supply of a private automatic branch exchange (PABX) and telephone system. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Iraq: PE pipelines

    Supply of 16-inch-diameter polyethylene (PE)-coated pipelines for a refinery. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Iraq: Petroleum products

    Supply by tanker of petroleum products. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Iraq: Pick-up trucks

    Supply of double-cabin pick-up trucks. Closing date: 10 November 2009

  • Iraq: Police stations

    Construction of police stations for the capacity building of law enforcement in Basra.  Closing date: 20 November 2009

  • Iraq: Power generation

    Provision of support for power generation, planning, financing and development. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Iraq: Power generation development consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services to support the planning, financing and development of additional power generation in Iraq. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Iraq: Power plant parts

    Supply of spare parts for a power plant. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Iraq: Power plant pumps and valves

    Supply of two hydraulic pumps and valves for a power plant. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Iraq: Refinery asphalt blowing unit

    Supply of an asphalt blowing unit for a refinery. Closing date: 2 February 2010

  • Iraq: Reverse osmosis unit

    Design, supply and supervision of installation of a reverse osmosis unit. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Road construction supervision

    Provision of construction supervision services for the upgrade of the Umm Qasr-Az-Zubair highway. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Road rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of the Umm Qasr-Az-Zubair highway. Closing date: 7 January 2010

  • Iraq: Sand preparation equipment rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of sand preparation equipment. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Iraq: Steel bars

    Supply of stainless steel round bars. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • Iraq: Transformer outer cores

    Supply of outer cores for transformers. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • Iraq: Transformers

    Supply of three-phase transformers for the testing of distribution transformers. Closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Iraq: Volumetric field test measurement

    Supply of certified volumetric field standard test measurement. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Iraq: Voter registration IT equipment

    Supply of IT equipment for updating voter registration. Closing date: 17 November 2009

  • Iraq: Water supply system consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services comprising construction supervision of the upgrading of a rural water supply system. Closing date: 10 December 2009

  • Iraq: Wheel loaders

    Supply of 19 wheel loaders. Closing date: 2 December 2009

  • Iraq: Wood

    Supply of cross-wire laminated wood with phenol resin. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • Isaac Daniel setting up Middle East HQ

    Isaac Daniel, a US-based developer of GPS and satellite embedded technologies and real time location-based services, plans to set up a divisional headquarter in Dubai. It will operate under the name ID Conex Communication (Middle East) and distribute and sell a range of GPS and location-based products and services for individuals, businesses and governments.

  • Istithmar World sells London properties at a loss

    Great Portland Estates buys special purpose vehicle

  • IT budgets levels expected to return

    According to a survey conducted by the SAP Users Group Mena (SUG-Mena), IT budgets are expected to return to pre-downturn levels and companies are viewing IT as an important asset to thrive in the current economic conditions, Emirates Business has reported. Some 92% of the executives polled believe that strategic IT investments can help companies survive and prosper during the economic downturn, the survey showed. Executives also felt that IT vendors could help by becoming more proactive in h

  • Jazeera passenger traffic up 65% in Q3

    Jazeera Airways has said it has transported 582,490 passengers, 65% higher than the third quarter of 2008. Revenues were recorded KD15.9m for Q3 2009 and profit for the quarter has reached KD0.76m. The airline has also announced its summer destinations for travelers looking for early bookings.

  • Jordan Lafarge ups cement prices

    Jordan Lafarge Cement Factories Co has announced a JD2 per-ton increase in cement prices, state news agency Petra has reported. The kingdom's sole manufacturer of cement has attributed the rise to higher prices of industrial fuel.

  • Jordan lifts India tourist visa restrictions

    Jordan has said that visa restrictions on individual Indian nationals visiting the kingdom as tourists have been lifted. The decision came as move to promote tourism to the country and to support economic growth, the Jordan Tourism Board said. The decision is in line with a series of efforts to stimulate and boost the tourism sector in light of the current global economic crisis. Such efforts include the reduction of the sales tax on hotel rooms and plans to reduce electricity tariffs on hote

  • Jordan to promote rail project in France

    A Jordanian government delegation will visit Paris on Friday to promote Jordan's national railway project and outline financial sources available to support it, state news agency Petra has reported. The delegation will meet with 40 financial and banking institutions, as well as railway companies from various countries.

  • Jordan: Battery chargers

    Supply of nine fuel 50-vdc battery chargers and ancillary equipment. Closing date: 10 December 2009

  • Jordan: Light rail transit system consultancy

    Provision of technical consultancy services for the construction of light rail transit system. Closing date: 13 November 2009

  • Jordan: Solid waste management project

    Carrying out a solid waste management project. New closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Jordan: Wastewater treatment plant

    Construction of the upgrade of a wastewater treatment plant. New closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Jordan’s biggest banks report losses

    Two institutions announce writedowns due to bad loans

  • Jordanian firm bids low for Kuwaiti power work

    Winning contractor to supply cables for electricity transmission networks

  • Jotun opens Saudi plant

    Jotun Saudia, a subsidiary of the Norwegian paint and coatings producer Jotun A/S, has inaugurated its new SR100m paint factory in Saudi Arabia. With the inauguration of the new factory, Jotun's installed production capacity in the kingdom has increased to 110 million litres of paint, making it one of the largest in the Middle East.

  • Jumeirah to manage hotel in Panama

    Dubai-based luxury hospitality firm, Jumeirah Group has signed a management agreement with Spanish developer, Grupo Mall to manage a luxury hotel in Panama City. The Jumeirah Los Faros de Panama will offer 400 guest rooms and suites, Jumeirah's signature Talise spa, fitness and leisure amenities, and 3,000 square metres of conference and meeting facilities.

  • Juniper unveils T1600 Card

    Juniper Networks has unveiled a new 10 port, 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) Physical Interface Card (PIC) for its T1600 Series Core Router. The new 10x10GbE PIC promises to deliver the highest density of 10GbE interfaces on a core router, as well as unique Intelligent Oversubscription capabilities, enabling customers to reduce costs and increase efficiency.

  • Korean and Saudi firms complete Jordanian power project financing

    Kexim provides guarantee on $97m loan funded by BNP Paribas and KfW

  • Kuwait Airways adds new route to Bangladesh

    Kuwait Airways has announced the launch of a new route to the city of Chittagong, Bangladesh, KUNA has reported. Chittagong is the airline's second destination in Bangladesh.

  • Kuwait Airways picks GE borescope

    Kuwait Airways, the country's national carrier, has selected GE Sensing and Inspection Technologies' XL Go video borescope to support its aircraft inspection regime. The portable XL Go provides advanced image handling and data transfer capabilities, which the carrier say will raise productivity and efficiency while complying with global aviation safety regulations.

  • Kuwait approves sixth ring-road construction contract

    Kharafi will build new intersections serving the Jahra residential area

  • Kuwait awards power transmission deals

    National Contracting secures electricity work

  • Kuwait delays deadline for housing work

    Firms get more time for Sabah al-Ahmed and Al-Jaber al-Ahmed bids

  • Kuwait launches $280m crude oil pipeline deal

    New 120km pipeline will run from northern fields to central Kuwait

  • Kuwait moving forward with metro project

    Kuwait has invited consultants to express interest in its 171-kilometre metro project, MEED magazine has reported. The estimated $7bn scheme will involve building four lanes, with 60km of the network underground. The successful developer will design, build, finance, operate and maintain the metro network for an undisclosed period of time.

  • Kuwait opens $2bn aromatics plant

    Kuwait's Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC) has started operations at a $2bn aromatics plant this week that is expected to reach full capacity by early December, Reuters has reported. The Kuwait Aromatics plant, which has a nameplate capacity of 830,000 tons per year (tpy) of paraxylene and nearly 400,000 tpy of benzene, can produce up to 1 million tpy of light naphtha, and is currently operating at 60%. PIC and Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) each have a 40% stake in the plant,

  • Kuwait parliament to discuss personal debt bill

    Personal and consumer debt currently stands at $25bn

  • Kuwait posts $17.5bn surplus in six months

    State coffers buoyed by high oil prices and low spending

  • Kuwait prime minister to face parliamentary questions

    Sheikh Nasser al-Ahmed al-Sabah will be the first senior GCC leader to submit to questioning by a publicly-elected body

  • Kuwait sets new closing date for road tender

    Bidders have been given two more weeks to prepare their prices

  • Kuwait tenders West Funaitees water storage work

    Contractors to bid for construction deal in February 2010

  • Kuwait, India airlines sign agreement

    Kuwait Airways and Air India have signed a commercial cooperation agreement, KUNA has reported. Under the agreement, a number of economy, business and first class seats will be allocated for Air India passengers, while flight schedules between Kuwait and India will be announced through different booking systems.

  • Kuwait: Broadcasting channels

    Provision of radio and television broadcasting channels. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Building cleaning works

    Carrying out cleaning works at buildings and facilities. Closing date: 20 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Chemical injection and monitoring upgrade

    Upgrade of chemical injection and monitoring capability at facilities. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Communications upgrade works

    Upgrading of international communications network capacity. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Computers

    Supply of computers. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Computers

    Supply, installation and maintenance of computers. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Crude oil transit line

    Construction of a 30-inch crude oil transit line. Closing date: 31 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Data transmission lines

    Connection and operation of data transmission lines and the internet. Closing date: 29 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Drinking water ground tanks

    Construction, completion and maintenance of five 80 million-gallon ground concrete tanks for drinking water. Closing date: 7 February 2010

  • Kuwait: Fire brigade equipment and transport services

    Supply of machinery, equipment and land transport services for the Fire Brigade. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Fire brigade installation rehabilitation

    Maintenance and rehabilitation of fire brigade installations. Closing date: 27 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Fuel tank

    Construction of a fuel tank for a power and water distillation plant. Closing date: 29 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Gas treatment unit burner chimneys

    Design, fabrication and installation of two new chimneys for burners at a gas treatment unit. Closing date: 26 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Ground and pilot cables

    Supply and extension of 132kV ground cables and pilot cables. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Ground sign lines

    Production and maintenance of ground sign lines. Closing date: 12 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Gymnasium and diving hall

    Construction and completion of a gymnasium and diving hall. Closing date: 10 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Hospital emergency generators (Farwaniya)

    Supply and installation of emergency generators for a hospital in Farwaniya. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Hospital emergency generators (Jahra)

    Supply and installation of emergency generators for a hospital in Jahra. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Imam and Muadhin villas

    Construction, completion and maintenance of seven villas for Imams and Muadhins. Closing date: 22 November 2009

  • Kuwait: Military supplies

    Supply of military supplies. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Oil production facilities maintenance (north)

    Maintenance of oil production facilities in the north. Closing date: 10 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Oil production facilities maintenance (west)

    Maintenance of oil production facilities in the west. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Power lines

    Repair and installation of 11kV medium-tension overhead power lines. Closing date: 22 December 2009tend

  • Kuwait: Rapid transit system consultancy

    Provision of transaction advisory services for development of a rapid transit system. Closing date: 22 November 2009

  • Kuwait: Refinery works

    Carrying out scaffolding and preparation works at refineries. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Road maintenance (Capital)

    Maintenance of cross-cutting services, roads and squares at Capital, Farwaniya and Jahra governorates. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Road maintenance (Hawally)

    Maintenance of cross-cutting services, roads and squares at Hawally, Ahmadi and Mubarak al-Kabeer governorates. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Road, rainwater drainage and sanitary services

    Construction of roads, rainwater drainage and sanitary services. Closing date: 3 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Scale inhibitor

    Supply of scale inhibitor. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Swimming pool complex

    Construction, completion and maintenance of a swimming pool complex. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Kuwait: Swimming pool complex

    Construction, completion and maintenance of swimming pool complex. Closing date: 17 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Telephone cables and cabins

    Supply of telephone cables and cabins. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Treated water distribution network O&M

    Operation and maintenance (O&M) of a pipeline and treated water distribution network. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Kuwait: University works

    Carrying out operation, maintenance and repair works at a university. Closing date: 27 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Vehicles

    Supply of vehicles to transport soldiers and equipment. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Water network pipe extension works (northwest)

    Carrying out emergency repair works for water network pipe extensions in the northwest. Closing date: 29 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Water network pipe extension works (southeast)

    Carrying out emergency repair works for water network pipe extensions in the southeast. Closing date: 29 December 2009

  • Kuwait: Water tanks

    Construction, completion and maintenance of strategic water tanks. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • L+T to open hi-tech Oman facility

    L&T Heavy Engineering, a joint venture between Oman-based Zubair Corporation and India's Larsen and Toubro is set to inaugurate a high tech manufacturing facility in Sohar, Oman. The new plant will augment the existing modular fabrication facility which caters to the hydrocarbon and power sectors. The current facility is spread over 300,000 sqm and has a built-up area of 12,000 sqm with an additional 100,000sqm available for future expansion.

  • Lafarge Cement secures $340m loan

    Lafarge Cement Syria, a subsidiary of French Lafarge, has secured a seven-year $340m syndicated loan to finance its cement factory in Syria, Reuters has reported. The loan by a group of mostly Arab banks would partly cover the cost of the 2.75 million ton a year factory. Syria produces six million tons of cement a year, 2-3 million tons short of domestic demand. All cement factories are owned by the state, except for two privately owned factories under construction, including Lafarge's plant.

  • Lafarge completes $682m cement plant financing

    French group raises financing for Syrian Cement plant

  • Last giant synthesis reactor in place at Pearl GTL

    Qatar Petroleum and Shell have announced the installation of the last of 24 heavy paraffin synthesis reactors at their Pearl GTL project at Ras Laffan, Gulf Times has reported. The project's construction is expected to be complete around Q4 2010 with project ramp-up then taking about 12 months. Heavy paraffin synthesis reactors are the core of the process of turning natural gas into high quality liquid transport fuels, base oils for lubricants, and chemical feedstock.

  • Lebanon may sell stake in MEA airline

    Lebanon's central bank governor has said the country may sell a 25% stake in its national carrier, Middle East Airlines, in an initial public offering, Reuters has reported. Riad Salameh said the proposed sale would have to be done after the end of the current economic slowdown and when a new Lebanese government approves the IPO plans and the listing of shares on the Beirut bourse.

  • Lebanon: School works

    Carrying out remaining works at a school. Closing date: 1 December 2009

  • Lebanon: Sewer networks and pumping station construction supervision

    Supervision of the construction of sewer networks and pumping station. Closing date: 7 January 2010

  • Lecico Q3 profits up 13%

    Egyptian ceramics manufacturer, Lecico has said its third-quarter net profit climbed 13% to EGP29.5m ($5.4m), Reuters has reported. Currency gains had helped offset lower sales as tile output was hit by maintenance shutdowns, the firm said. Net sales fell to EGP273.2m this quarter, compared with EGP295.6m in the same period last year.

  • Lecico to build Egypt tile plant

    Lecico, the Egyptian ceramics manufacturer, has announced it will build a $42m tile factory to take advantage of strong demand and the growing profitability of its business, Reuters has reported. The plant, near the northern port city of Alexandria, will produce red body tiles in the second quarter of 2011, followed by porcelain tiles in the fourth quarter. The first phase will cost $27.5m. The second phase, which will cost $14.5m, will expand production of red body tiles in mid-2013 and porc

  • Lexmark launches touch-screen printers

    Lexmark International has introduced to the market its first single-function monochrome A4 laser printer with a touch-screen functionality. Lexmark's T656dne monochrome laser printer is catered for large workgroups, providing access to preloaded and customizable applications. Lexmark T656dne is equipped with an internal 80+GB hard disk to support tailored software applications and provide ample storage capacity.

  • Libya: Cementing equipment and services

    Supply of cementing equipment, materials and services. Closing date: 3 December 2009

  • Libya: Drilling and completion fluid services

    Provision of drilling and completion fluid services. Closing date: 2 December 2009

  • Libya: Harbour and breakwaters

    Design and execution of harbour and breakwaters at a marine terminal. Closing date: 16 November 2009

  • Libya: Land transportation services

    Provision of land transportation services. Closing date: 22 November 2009

  • Libya: Oil field core analysis

    Provision of special core analysis services for an oil field. Closing date: not stated

  • Libya: Safety tools

    Supply of safety tools for use in hazardous areas. Closing date: 2 December 2009

  • Libya: Well drilling palynology analysis

    Provision of palynology analysis for onshore well drilling services. Closing date: 15 November 2009

  • Libya: Well testing services

    Provision of well testing services. Closing date: 2 December 2009

  • Louvre, Golden Tulip to add 60 hotels in region

    Louvre Hotels and Golden Tulip Hospitality Group, Starwood Capital subsidiaries, have announced plans to add 60 hotels in the Middle East in the next five years, Gulf News has reported. 'We are aiming at putting at least 10,000 rooms by 2014 — with each hotel having on an average 100 rooms,' Pierre-Frederic Roulot, President of Golden Tulip Hospitality Group and Louvre Hotels, told the newspaper.

  • Manara awards deal for Nurana waterfront scheme to US firm

    Great Lakes Dredge & Dock wins $26m contract

  • Manazel terminates two construction agreements at Building Material City

    Developer is still working with contractor Fibrex on first phase of the project

  • Marriott expands its hotel footprint in Middle East

    Marriott International has announced plans to open five hotels across the Middle East & Africa and establish a regional headquarters in Dubai, signalling its continued confidence in the long-term growth prospects for the hospitality industry in the region. The US-based hotel chain said today it plans to open two properties in Algeria, and one each in Ghana, Morocco, and Egypt. The hotels are scheduled to open under long-term management contracts over the next 36 months and represent the compa

  • Marriott launches corporate restructure

    Arne Sorenson, president of Marriott International has said the company is undertaking a corporate restructure, according to Breaking Travel News website. The restructuring will see the company split into four autonomous divisions whilst bringing the formerly stand-alone Ritz-Carlton brand into its corporate offices. The move aims to decentralize power so that the regional presidents 'have the resources necessary to make decisions and so those decisions can be faster, more efficient, more loc

  • McAfee and HP offer 18-month security cover

    McAfee has signed a deal with HP to provide an 18-month subscription to McAfee Total Protection Service on HP desktop and notebook PCs in the Middle East. Aimed at small businesses and available from HP Preferred Partners, cover includes anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall and basic email virus protection service, centrally managed by McAfee. "Smaller businesses today are under constant attack from an ever-growing list of security threats, including new forms of malware, spam and data loss," s

  • McAfee introduces new email and web security appliance

    McAfee, Inc. has unveiled its McAfee Email and Web Security Appliance 5.5 which aim to help protect users against the latest web-borne threats, manage web and email traffic, and reduce system administration requirements. Designed for small and midsized businesses, the integrated appliance features Artemis and TrustedSource Technology Integration, Appliance Clustering with Load Balancing, New Content Policy Wizards, and Integrated URL Filtering.

  • Mercury wins Barwa commercial project contract

    Irish firm to complete mechanical, electrical and plumbing package

  • MGM says Vegas project unaffected by Dubai woes

    US-based MGM Mirage has said it does not expect Dubai World's restructuring to affect their $8.5bn joint CityCenter project, Reuters has reported. 'CityCenter is fully funded, on schedule and ready to begin welcoming guests starting next week. Our joint venture is unaffected by Dubai World's announcement,' an MGM Mirage spokeswoman told the news service. The project is a Las Vegas Strip residential, entertainment and shopping complex.

  • Microsoft patching Windows 7 vulnerability

    Microsoft is working on a fix for a vulnerability in the Server Message Block file-sharing protocol in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 Release 2, which could be used to remotely crash a computer. "If exploited, this [denial-of-service] vulnerability would not allow an attacker to take control of, or install malware on, the customer's system but could cause the affected system to stop responding until manually restarted," Dave Forstrom, group manager for public relations at Microsoft Trustwo

  • Microsoft steps up anti-piracy efforts

    Microsoft Gulf has filed criminal complaints which had resulted in five anti-piracy raids on resellers in the UAE last month. The raids, which were conducted in Dubai and Sharjah, had resulted in the confiscation of pirated software CDs and personal computers and laptops loaded with pirated copies of Microsoft software, the company said.

  • Middle East contracts awarded: November 2009

    More than $15.3bn worth of contracts have been awarded across the Middle East up to 9 November 2009, according to this selected checklist compiled from MEED reports

  • Middle East hotels eye expansion in India

    UAE-based hotel firms Jumeirah and Rotana are among a growing number of hotel chains looking to expand in India, Emirates Business has reported. Jumeirah finds the growth of the Indian hospitality industry encouraging and sees the country as an opportunity to continue growing its global brand presence, Jumeirah's Executive Chairman, Gerald Lawless told the newspaper. Meanwhile, Rotana is currently negotiating with property owners to establish its brand in India, according to Amal Harb, Associ

  • Middle East passenger traffic increases 14 per cent

    Region experiences fastest growth in the world

  • Military orders likely to steal limelight at Dubai Airshow

    One of the themes that is expected to emerge at this year's Dubai Airshow is that military orders will grab a bigger share of the spotlight as civilian aircraft deals decline due to the global economic crisis. Military participation this year at the Dubai Airshow will grow to 40%, organisers say, and companies such as American defence contractor Raytheon have already announced that they are planning to sign a number of missile and air traffic control deals at the show.

  • Minister: Lebanon to receive 2 million visitors in '09

    Lebanon is on pace to receive two million tourists in 2009 for the first time in its history despite the global economic downturn, Dr Nada Sardouk Ghandour, Lebanon's director general for the ministry of tourism, told AMEInfo.com on the sidelines of the Middle East Tourism Marketing Summit 2009 today.

  • Mobily offers free WiFi for Hajj

    Saudi Arabia's Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) has announced the launch of a free WiFi service in the holy sites in Makkah to enable pilgrims to access the internet during this year's Hajj season. The free service will be available through Mobily's data arm Bayanat Al-Oula, and will enable anyone with a laptop, PC and WiFi enabled mobile phone to connect wirelessly to the internet without charge.

  • Modern Water starts Omani desalination plant output

    Project produces fresh water while cutting power and operating costs

  • Moody’s downgrades five Dubai companies

    Downgrade follows government’s $2bn sukuk issue

  • Moody's affirms Sabic A1 rating

    Moody's Investors Services has said it has affirmed the 'A1' senior unsecured ratings of Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic) and its guaranteed subsidiary Sabic Capital with a positive outlook. The rating agency has said it continues to take significant comfort from the strong global positioning of Sabic within the petrochemicals and fertilizer markets and its highly competitive cost position.

  • Moody's downgrades Dubai companies to junk status

    Ratings agencies downgrade major Dubai goverment backed companies

  • Moody's estimates Dubai's bad debt is $25bn

    Dubai will need government support

  • Moriyuki Aida, Chief Representative, Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)

    Moriyuki Aida, Chief Representative for the Dubai office of JBIC explains why close ties with the UAE are so important to Japan.

  • Morocco plans $9bn solar power project

    Scheme will be equivalent to 38 per cent of current installed capacity

  • Morocco: Airport security equipment

    Supply of security equipment for an airport project. Closing date: 5 November 2009

  • Morocco: Airport signalisation

    Supply and implementation of fixed signalisation for an airport project. Closing date: 5 November 2009

  • Morocco: Airport telescopic footbridges

    Supply, installation and testing of telescopic footbridges for an airport. Closing date: 5 November 2009

  • Morocco: Airport terminal furniture

    Supply of furniture for an airport terminal. Closing date: 5 November 2009

  • Morocco: Caustic soda

    Supply of caustic soda. Closing date: 25 November 2009

  • Morocco: Drinking water intake project (lot 1)

    Implementation of automatic systems and remote processing for drinking water intake. Closing date: 8 March 2010

  • Morocco: Drinking water intake project (lot 2)

    Implementation of automatic systems and remote processing for drinking water intake. Closing date: 8 March 2010

  • Morocco: Hydraulic pump couplers

    Supply and installation of two hydraulic pump couplers. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • Morocco: Power project parts

    Supply of spare parts for a power project including faucets relaxation and de-superheating bypass barrels. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • Motabaqah opens petrochem laboratory

    The Saudi Specialized Laboratory Co., (Motabaqah), has announced the opening of its new Petrochemical Testing Laboratory located in the First Industrial City district of Dammam. The new laboratory will enable testing of a wide range of petrochemical products and significantly enhance the firm's capacity to provide high quality testing of products traditionally imported into the kingdom, Motabaqah said in a statement.

  • Motorola ships 10,000 WiMax base site

    Motorola Home and Networks Mobility business has announced that it has shipped its 10,000th 802.16e WiMAX Access Point base site. The group said that this shipment represented over 40% compound annual growth rate since Motorola's first WiMAX access points were shipped in 2007.

  • Mövenpick opens Hajar Tower Makkah hotel

    The Swiss Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts group has recently opened in Saudi Arabia the Mövenpick Hotel & Residence Hajar Tower Makkah, a part of the Abraj Al Bait complex and located directly on the Haram Court facing the King Abdul Aziz Gate. With 41 floors, the hotel has 1204 rooms and apartments. The hotel has a business centre and five dining options, catering to pilgrims and business travellers.

  • Mubadala completes $1bn Zayed financing

    Deal finally closed after being launched in April

  • Mubadala shortlists three firms for Rosewood hotel in Abu Dhabi

    Five-star hotel will be built on Sowwah Island

  • Mubadala signs Airbus wing deal

    Mubadala Aerospace, a unit of Abu Dhabi's state-owned investment firm Mubadala Development, has signed two contracts to provide wing panels for Airbus SAS's wide-body planes, Bloomberg has reported. The agreements call for Mubadala's Strata plant to make carbon fibre panel skins for aircraft ailerons from 2011. Airbus is currently producing eight wide-body planes a month.

  • Mubadala, Boeing ink strategic deal

    Abu Dhabi government-owned Mubadala Development has announced the signing of a strategic framework agreement with Boeing International Corp. The agreement will see cooperation in high-tech activities, including composite manufacturing, engineering, research and development, commercial maintenance, repair and overhaul, military maintenance and sustainment, pilot training and people development.

  • Muscat awards Duqm advisory deal to UK firm

    Project will be Oman’s first coal-fired plant

  • Nakheel discusses $3.5bn repayment with Dubai World

    Investors expect to repay sukuk by deadline

  • National Marine Dredging wins Mussafah shipping channel work

    Abu Dhabi plans 63-kilometre channel near Hudayriat Island

  • Nepal Airlines signs deal for two Airbus aircraft

    Nepal Airlines has signed a deal to buy two Airbus aircraft, one A330-200 wide-body plane and one A320 single aisle jet. The new Airbus aircraft, which are valued at about $250m, will be deployed on international services to Japan and will for the very first time connect Nepal to Europe with direct flights. Delivery of the two planes was scheduled for 2011 and valued at about $250 million. The new planes are scheduled for delivery in 2011 and will play a key role in developing Nepal's tourism

  • NetJets looks to Mideast for business growth

    NetJets, the world's largest private aviation operator, has faced a challenging year across the globe but is counting on its operations in the Middle East to help lead a turnaround in the company's fortunes.

  • New charter airline to launch in UAE

    A new charter company based in the UAE emirate of Fujairah was launched yesterday to link the East Coast of the country to Abu Dhabi. Abulhoul Aviation will start operations in January with a Cessna 206 Station Air and will gradually increase its assets and destinations to include GCC countries. The aircraft will use floats to land on water and other places that don't have runways.

  • New e-ticketing system in Dubai gains users

    Dubai officials say they are pleased with the response to a new scheme that allows motorists to pay for parking by using their mobile phones, reported the National. The mParking scheme, which was launched in May, allows a driver to buy an e-ticket by sending a text message; it costs 30 fils more than a conventional ticket. The number of e-tickets issued has topped more than a quarter of a million, with a daily average of 4,200 at various tariffs, according to Maitha bin Adai, the chief execut

  • New Etihad A330-200 freighter makes test flight

    Etihad Crystal Cargo has announced its new A330-200 freighter has made its maiden flight over Toulouse in France marking the beginning of a 200-hour flight-test and certification campaign. The new aircraft, due for delivery in 2010, will enhance the capacity of the cargo division of Etihad with its extensive range and a higher maximum payload, the company said in a statement. The new Airbus A330 can carry more than 64 metric tons over 4,000 nautical miles/7,400km, or more than 69 metric tons

  • New hotel planned for Jordan

    Jordan's Dead Sea Development Corp. has signed an agreement with the Amazon River Company for Tourism Investment to build a 4-star hotel on the shores of the Dead Sea, Jordan Times has reported. The $45m hotel is expected to be completed within 34 months.

  • New initiative to boost Arabic content on Web

    Bahrain has announced a new initiative to increase the amount of Arabic online content, Gulf Daily News has reported. Bahrain's eGovernment Authority and the United Nations Development Programme are joining hands to create the Centre for eContent Development, which will be headquartered in Bahrain and 'increase significantly' Arabic content in websites from the present one percent.

  • 'No H1N1 ban' on Hajj pilgrims

    Saudi Arabia has said it will not bar anyone considered high-risk for swine flu from performing the hajj pilgrimage this year, while urging pilgrims to take necessary precautions, the Associated Press has reported. 'Saudi Arabia does not ban anyone because hajj is a religious event,' the kingdom's health minister Abdullah al-Rabeeah told reporters. 'Saudi Arabia has put in place strong recommendations that we hope individual countries will abide by,' he said.

  • Nurol wins Bab al-Qasr Hotel construction contract

    New hotel will be built next to Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace

  • Oil trades at $79 a barrel

    Crude supplies fall in the US

  • Oman Air buys five Embraer jets

    Brazilian plane maker Embraer, the world's largest maker of regional jets, said today it has signed a deal to sell five Embraer 175 aircraft to Oman Air. The deal, which is valued at $177.5m, is the manufacturer's first with a Gulf airline. Oman Air has also taken options for five more Embraer 175, potentially doubling the value of the deal, Embraer said. First delivery of the 72-seat aircraft is scheduled for the first quarter of 2011.

  • Oman Air launches new three-class service from Heathrow

    Oman Air has launched a new three-class service aboard its new A330-300 aircraft on its flagship Muscat - London Heathrow route. The new service features new first class, business class and economy class cabins. The first class cabin has just six seats and offers the longest lie-flat bed available on any commercial airliner, the carrier said.

  • Oman Air warns Boeing on Dreamliner delays

    Peter Hill, CEO of Oman Air has said that Boeing risks losing a $1bn order for its 787 Dreamliner aircraft to a rival model from Airbus, if the US plane's production schedule is delayed any further, Times of Oman has reported. 'Further delays might mean that we'd have to look elsewhere,' he said. The Sultanate's national carrier already has seven A330s from Airbus on order, with the first four scheduled for handover this year.

  • Oman prequalifies firms for water management contract

    Eighteen contractors buy documents

  • Oman to build roads in Al-Batinah

    Contractors compete for construction projects

  • Oman: Ambulances

    Supply and installation of ambulances. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Building construction

    Construction, completion and maintenance of a building. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Electrical cables

    Supply of electrical cables. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Grain silo consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services comprising the design and supervision of grain silos. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Hospital cardiology equipment

    Supply, installation, commissioning and end-user training of equipment for cardiology at a hospital. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Hospital hyperbaric therapy unit

    Supply and installation of a hyperbaric therapy unit at a hospital. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Industrial vehicles

    Supply of industrial vehicles. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Oman: Information and service portal equipment

    Supply, installation, testing and commissioning of infrastructure for a fully operational web-based information and service portal. Closing date: 18 January 2010

  • Oman: Medical equipment

    Supply, installation, commissioning and end-user training of medical equipment for a cardiology centre and MRI unit. Closing date: 18 January 2010

  • Oman: Power cables

    Replacing portions of overhead power lines with cables. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Power generation equipment maintenance

    Maintenance of power generation equipment. Closing date: 2 January 2010

  • Oman: Power generation equipment maintenance

    Maintenance of power generation equipment. Closing date: 1 December 2009

  • Oman: Power rental

    Provision of temporary rental of power to the main interconnected system. Tender Closing date: 21 December 2009

  • Oman: Refinery turnaround and inspection project

    Carrying out a refinery turnaround and inspection project. Closing date: 21 December 2009

  • Oman: Reservoir chlorination unit

    Implementation of a chlorination unit at a reservoir. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Road construction (Al-Sihrah)

    Design and construction of a road in Al-Sihrah. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Oman: Road construction (Nakhal)

    Design and construction of roads in Nakhal. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Oman: Road construction (Sohar)

    Design and construction of a road in Sohar. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Oman: Road dualisation

    Dualisation of a road. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Roundabout and underpass

    Design and construction of a roundabout and pedestrian underpass. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: School construction

    Construction of a 12-classroom boys’ basic education school. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Oman: Seawater intake pumping station consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for a seawater intake pumping station. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Steel structure refurbishment works

    Carrying out refurbishment works on a steel structure at a power and desalination plant. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Oman: Substation

    Construction of a 132kV substation. Closing date: 1 December 2009

  • Oman: Substation switchgear building

    Provision of a new 11kV switchgear building at a primary substation. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Telecoms network expansion

    Expansion of an NGN access network for a telecommunications company. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Oman: Transformers

    Supply of 20MVA, 33/11.5kV transformers. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Vehicles

    Supply of vehicles. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Oman: Vocational training centre

    Construction of a vocational training centre. Closing date: 4 January 2010

  • Oman: Water distribution network

    Construction of a water distribution network. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Orascom and Hassan Allam secure 6 October City wastewater work

    Joint venture to build infrastructure in three years

  • Passenger traffic at Dubai airport grows 13.5 per cent

    Aviation authority claims sector is recovering from the downturn

  • Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports pt 1

    Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports, talks to Phil Blizzard about how the aviation landscape has changed since his appointment in 2007 and what effect the global downturn has had, if any, on development plans. We look at how passenger figures at the airport have changed, the costs involved in running an international airport and its various revenue streams.

  • Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports pt 2

    Phil Blizzard talks to Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports and in part two the focus is very much the construction of Concourse 3 at Dubai International Airport and the development of Dubai World Central-Al Maktoum International Airport.

  • PC shipments will climb in 2009, says report

    Global PC shipments will climb nearly 3% in 2009, but declining prices will mean that revenue will dip nearly 11%, according to IT research and advisory firm, Gartner Inc. Worldwide personal computer shipments will total 298.9 million units in 2009, up 2.8% from 2008, the firm said. A surge in PC sales during the third quarter of the year has forced Gartner to reassess its earlier predictions that shipments would fall 2% this year. 'The unexpected increase is most likely due to a reduction i

  • PepsiCo plans $100m investment in Egypt

    US soft drinks and snacks maker PepsiCo Inc has announced plans to invest $100m in Egypt in 2010, Reuters has reported. The announcement was made by the company's vice president for global public policy and government affairs, Elizabeth Avery who spoke at a luncheon by the Business Council for International Understanding in honor of Egyptian Trade and Industry Minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid.

  • Petrobras considers withdrawal from Iran oil exploration

    Brazilian firm planned to develop Caspian Sea acreage

  • Qatar Airways increases Stockholm route

    Qatar Airways has said it has will expand its Doha-Stockholm route to a daily service and will deploy a wide body Airbus A330 from March 28, 2010. The carrier has been operating a 110-seat Airbus A319 on the Stockholm route since the Swedish service was launched in November 2007. The twin-aisle A330s will offer more than twice the current A319 seating capacity-up to 260 seats with 24 in business and 236 in economy.

  • Qatar Airways wants revised A380 delivery schedule

    Akbar al-Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways, has said that in view of the airline's "performance requirements", the carrier has sought a revised schedule for the delivery of Airbus A380 aircraft, Gulf Times has reported. However, Qatar Airways will take delivery of the "contractually committed aircraft," he said. "We have placed orders for five Airbus A380s. These are firm orders and we have not gone for any other option," al-Baker said. The airline originally planned to start taking delivery of the

  • Qatar buys stake in petrochemicals deals in Singapore

    State-run energy company in joint venture with Shell

  • Qatar Petroleum invites gas exploration bids

    State-run firm explores areas outside North field

  • Qatar set to ink $25m railway deal

    Qatar is set to sign a deal worth $25bn for an integrated railway project with German rail and logistics giant, Deutsche Bahn to be held on Sunday at the Qatari Diar headquarters, The Peninsula has reported. In a separate report, German newspaper Handelsblatt has reported on Friday that Deutsche Bahn had won the contract to build a passenger and freight rail network in Qatar. The newspaper further cited government sources for its story, mentioning industrial group Siemens could be involved in

  • Qatar: Healthcare centre (Al-Nuaim)

    Construction of a primary healthcare centre at Al-Nuaim. Closing date: 12 January 2010

  • Qatar: Healthcare centre (Al-Roda)

    Construction of a primary healthcare centre at Al-Roda. Closing date: 12 January 2010

  • Qatar: Mosque complexes

    Construction of mosque complexes and Imam houses. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Qatar: Mosques and Imam houses

    Construction of mosques and Imam houses. Closing date: 17 November 2009

  • Qatar: Oil and gas-lift flowlines

    Hook-up of oil and gas-lift flowlines and PWI spurlines. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Qatar: Primary and distribution water networks

    Replacement of primary and distribution water networks. Closing date: 24 January 2010

  • Qatar: Road improvement (76-79)

    Carrying out road improvement works in zones 76 to 79. Closing date: 24 November 2009

  • Qatar: Road improvement works (Al-Daayen)

    Carrying out road improvement works in Al-Daayen Municipality. Closing date: 5 January 2009

  • Qatar: Road improvement works (Doha)

    Carrying out road improvement works in Doha Municipality. Closing date: 5 January 2009

  • Qatar: School modifications and additions

    Carrying out modifications and additions to 36 schools. Closing date: 8 December 2009

  • Qatar: Sewerage project

    Provision of house connections for a sewerage project. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Qatargas gets new LNG carrier

    A new Q-Max LNG carrier has been delivered to Nakilat and chartered on long term contract to Qatar Liquefied Gas Company Limited (4), known as QG4, at Samsung Heavy Industries Co shipyard on Geoje Island. The Nakilat owned Q-Max LNG Carrier Shagra (266,000 CBM) will be used to ship LNG produced by QG4, to markets primarily in North America and China, according to a press statement.

  • Qatargas to supply gas to China

    Doha signs deal to export five million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas to state energy firms

  • Qatari demand for power increases 14 per cent

    Customers use 215 million gallons of water in June

  • Qatar's Faisal Holding to buy hotels

    Qatar-based Al Faisal Holding is shifting its focus to the hospitality industry and plans to buy hotels in Europe, North America, and big Arab cities, Reuters has reported. The company is in talks with a number of parties and would 'definitely acquire hotels in a year', Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim al-Thani told the news service. 'The plan for next five years is to have between 5-10 hotels in the medium-term,' he said.

  • RAK glass processing plant opens

    Global Glass Solution, a regional designer, manufacturer and distributor of glass products, has opened a Dhs100m glass processing facility in the Al Ghail Industrial Park in the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. The new plant has a 1,000 square metres glass processing capacity per day and will initially cater to markets in the UAE and the GCC region.

  • Ramada to open its 12th hotel in Saudi

    Ramada Worldwide has announced that it is continuing its expansion in Saudi Arabia with the signing of an agreement for the five-star, 700-room Ramada Plaza Makkah hotel. The property will be the third Ramada hotel in the Holy City and twelth overall in the kingdom.

  • Raytheon wins Saudi contract

    The Saudi Arabia General Authority of Civil Aviation has awarded US-based Raytheon a contract for the installation of 21 air traffic management systems across the kingdom, the Saudi Gazette has reported. The new systems will extend air traffic control surveillance throughout the kingdom and enhance flight safety for the domestic airline sector. Raytheon will also establish a regional maintenance facility within the kingdom to support the systems.

  • Regional investors consider riskier assets

    Low interest rates results in companies searching for yield

  • Regulation shapes revolution in Gulf sustainable buildings

    Abu Dhabi will make sustainability compulsory from 1 January. The argument that the Gulf doesn’t care about the environment is false

  • Riyadh plans to tender rail construction deals in 2010

    Contractors will compete for design and build contracts

  • Riyadh university signs $167m power deals

    ABB and Alfanar Group secure contracts

  • Rotana to open tallest hotel in the world

    Rotana Hotels has announced plans to open the tallest hotel in the world in Dubai in mid December 2009. Opening under Rotana's alcohol-free 'Rayhaan' brand, the 72-storey Rose Rayhaan will rise 72 storeys, reaching a height of 333 metres. The hotel offer 481 rooms, suites and penthouses along with a range of food and beverage venues, eight meeting rooms, business facilities, a fitness centre, outdoor swimming pool, and sauna and steam rooms.

  • Rotana's Raouché Arjaan opens in Lebanon

    Mena-based hotel management company Rotana has opened its third hotel in Lebanon, Raouché Arjaan by Rotana. The hotel has 176 studios and suites with state-of-the-art amenities and recreational facilities, including a rooftop swimming pool and a Bodylines Health and Fitness centre. The hotel will also have authentic Lebanese cuisine in its food and beverage offering, a terrace cafe overlooking Raouché Boulevard, and an all-day dining venue offering continental and traditional fare for breakfa

  • Royal Jordanian inks IT deal with Amadeus

    Jordan's national carrier, Royal Jordanian, has signed a 10-year IT partnership with Amadeus Gulf to adopt its Altéa Customer Management and e-commerce suite of solutions. The new solution will enable RJ to manage all reservations, inventory and departure control.

  • Saad Group denies deal with Saudi banks

    Saudi conglomerate writes to creditors to deny local bank deal

  • Saad Group subsidiary defaults on $650m sukuk

    Freezing orders in Saudi Arabia hit conglomerate

  • Sabic says petrochemical demand rising

    Mohamed al-Mady, CEO of Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), has said that global demand for petrochemicals is improving but more time is needed until it reaches the desired level, Bloomberg has reported. The company plans to boost petrochemical production by 12 million tonnes in the next two years by expanding foreign ventures and domestic plants as the global economy improves, he said.

  • Sabic unit to build steel plant

    Saudi Iron & Steel Co. (Hadeed), a unit of Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic), has signed an agreement with Italy's Danieli & Co. SpA to build a steel plant in the kingdom, Bloomberg has reported. The plant will have the capacity to produce 500,000 metric tons a year, raising Hadeed's annual steel-production capacity to six million tons. Production is scheduled to commence in the second half of 2012.

  • Sage Software inks ITE Distribution as partner

    Sage Software has announced a partnership deal with Dubai-based IT distribution company ITE Distribution to distrbute Sage Software's 'Peachtree' accounting software range and 'ACT!' contact and customer management solution across the Middle East. ITE will handle all distribution activities for both products - from launches, stocking of supplies, in-store merchandise, product display, to appointment and development of resellers.

  • Salalah Methanol enters commissioning phase

    The $900m methanol complex at Oman-based Salalah Methanol has entered the commissioning phase, ahead of commercial production which is scheduled for early next year, Oman Observer has reported. It began receiving natural gas supplies last week, a key phase in the plant's development. Once operational in April next year, the plant will produce around 3,000 metric tonnes of methanol per day. It is majority owned by the state-owned Oman Oil and Oman Energy Trading. Methanol is used in manufactur

  • Salalah power project to complete financing on 14 November

    Standard Chartered to underwrite around $400m of the $1bn project

  • Samsung awarded Ruwais refinery contract

    Takreer also evaluates bids for marine work and storage tanks

  • Sanaa oil revenues drop 3 per cent

    Yemeni government faces cash crisis

  • SAPTCO passengers up 20%

    Saudi Arabia's national bus company, SAPTCO has confirmed a 20% increase in the number of travellers during the Hajj and Eid holidays compared to last year, Arab News has reported. 'The number of travellers has increased over the past week, which is normal with no availability of airline reservations and people on the move as the holidays begin,' a company supervisor said.

  • SaudConsult, Technip plan engineering JV

    Saudi Arabia-based multi-disciplinary engineering and architectural firm, SaudConsult has signed a memorandum of understanding with Technip France to set up a 50-50 joint-venture firm aimed at developing a new engineering centre in Saudi Arabia. Located in Al Khobar, the new company will focus on front end engineering design, detailed engineering, procurement and construction management services. Pending regulatory clearance, the new joint-venture is expected to begin operations by mid 2010.

  • Saudi Arabia inks SR222m radar deal

    Saudi Arabia's ministry of defence and aviation and US-based Raytheon International Company have signed a SR222m contract for 21 civil navigation radar systems to be installed across the kingdom, Arab News has reported. The new radars will cover the entire Saudi air space and detect aircraft at heights of 15,000 feet or above. The Raytheon system, which will be installed over 36 months, aims at enabling Saudi air traffic controllers to reduce the distance between two aircraft in the air.

  • Saudi Arabia : Electromechanical equipment

    Supply of electromechanical equipment. Closing date : 26 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Airport runway rehabilitation

    Rehabilitation of an airport runway. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Bridge and road intersections

    Construction of bridge and intersections to connect a highway with industrial and community areas. Rebid. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: College maintenance and janitorial services

    Provision of maintenance and janitorial services for a girls’ college facility. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Communications equipment

    Supply of communications equipment. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Computer systems

    Supply of computer systems. Closing date: 19 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Concrete

    Supply of ready-mix concrete. New closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Desalination plant repair works

    Carrying out reinforced concrete repair works at desalination plants. Closing date: 5 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Diesel generators

    Supply of diesel generators. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Fuels and lubricants

    Supply of fuels and lubricants. Closing date: 10 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Hospital maintenance

    Maintenance and cleaning of a hospital. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Medical care waste disposal

    Carrying out disposal of dangerous medical waste. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Medical faculty building furnishing

    Furnishing of a medical faculty building for a university. New closing date: 19 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Multi-event centre expansion

    Expansion of a multi-event centre. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Pipeline replacement

    Replacement of buried pipelines. Closing date: 11 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Power generation unit

    Replacement of a power generation unit. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Pumps and military equipment

    Supply of pumps and military equipment. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Scada and communications system upgrade

    Upgrade of a Scada system, communications system and cable. Closing date: 2 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Screen reader software

    Supply of screen reader software. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Telephone switchboard

    Supply and installation of a telephone switchboard. Closing date: 3 January 2010

  • Saudi Arabia: Vehicle leasing

    Leasing and maintenance of about 116 vehicles. Closing date: 12 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Water pipe cleaning

    Cleaning of water pipes. New closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Water pipes

    Supply, testing and changing of damaged water pipes. New closing date: 16 December 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Water projects

    Carrying out a study for and execution of water projects. Closing date: 17 November 2009

  • Saudi Arabia: Water purification plant O&M

    Operation and maintenance (O&M) of water purification plants. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Saudi Aramco and Sumitomo to make Rabigh expansion decision in 2010

    Firms to complete feasibility study in 2010

  • Saudi Aramco awards Ghawar drilling deal to Halliburton

    Contract covers engineering and management work on world’s largest oil field

  • Saudi Aramco awards pipeline construction work to Dutch firm

    Nacap-Suedrohrbau won engineering and design deal in April

  • Saudi Aramco delays deadline for Wasea bulk plant bids

    Winning contractor to build tanks, petrol pumps and substations

  • Saudi Aramco delays Manifa oil field production until 2013

    State firm extends deadline because of excess capacity

  • Saudi Aramco hold talks over $9.6bn Jubail financing

    Initial pricing is less than 100 basis points

  • Saudi Aramco starts oil production at Chinese refinery

    State-run firm to build refineries capable of handling heavier grades of crude

  • Saudi Aramco to make bank allocations on Jubail project

    Sponsors keen to close $9.6bn refinery deal by the end of 2009

  • Saudi beverage maker plans Iraq plant

    Kamel Abdallah, executive vice chairman of Saudi beverage maker, Aujan Industries Co has said the firm plans to invest $100m to launch production in Iraq, Reuters has reported. The company, which owns three plants in Saudi Arabia, Iran and the UAE, also plans to expand into Egypt and India, but only after the Iraq project has been completed, Abdallah said.

  • Saudi Electricity awards Riyadh transmission deal

    Consortium of KEC and Al-Sharif Group win $64m contract

  • Saudi firm approaches more contractors for Kingdom Tower deal

    Structure set to be the tallest building in the world

  • Saudi firm inks gold extraction deal in Ethiopia

    Saudi Arabia's Midroc Gold Co. has signed an agreement with the Ethiopian government to extract an estimated 20 tons of recoverable gold found in the country last month, Reuters has reported. Under the terms of the deal, Ethiopia gets 5% of royalties, takes 2% equity and will charge 35% tax. The extraction licence expires once 20 tons of gold has been extracted.

  • Saudi firm to build airstrips in industrial cities

    Saudi Industrial Property Authority (Modon) has signed an agreement with the Saudi Red Crescent Authority to establish airstrips for landing of ambulance helicopters and emergency service centres in Modon's 18 industrial cities, the Saudi Gazette has reported. The agreement aims to provide first-aid service in record time for workers of more than three thousand factories, Modon said.

  • Saudi Flight Academy buys 20 training aircraft

    The Saudi Aviation Flight Academy (SAFA) signed a contract for the purchase of 20 Diamond training aircraft and 12 flight simulator systems, Saudi Gazette has reported. The contract is part of the SR300 million allocated to fund SAFA, of which SR60m is destined for training aircraft.

  • Saudi monorail project to partially open next year

    Habeeb Zain Al-Abidine, deputy minister of Saudi Arabia's municipal and rural affairs ministry, has said that Makkah's monorail project will be partially operational next year and fully operational a year later, Arab News has reported. Studies are now under way on extending the monorail to a station close to the Grand Mosque in Makkah, to link it with the Haramain Railway that connects the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah. 'Once we find this project to be a success, we'll apply this syst

  • Saudi warns pilgrims from bogus companies

    A special toll-free number and website will be provided by Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Haj for local pilgrims to protect them from bogus companies offering to take them on Haj, Saudi Gazette has reported. Accredited companies will be published on the Ministry of Haj's website. The toll-free number is 800-244-4480 and, once activated, will be operational from 10 A.M. to 10 p.m.

  • Saudia signs engine wash service deal

    Saudi Arabian Airlines has signed an agreement with Pratt & Whitney for the expansion of its EcoPower engine wash service network to the Middle East and North Africa region. The agreement will enable Saudia to wash its own engines and to provide engine wash services to other commercial airlines that fly within the kingdom. The EcoPower service is designed to serve any commercial aero engine in service today, including JT9D, PW4000, PW2000, GE90, Trent700, CF6, V2500, CFM56 and CF34 engines.

  • Saudia to buy 58 Airbus planes

    Khaled Al-Molhem, director general of Saudi Arabian Airlines has said that the national carrier has signed a SR10bn contract with Airbus to buy 58 aircraft with advanced facilities, including A320s, A321s and A330s, Arab News has reported. 'We intend to modernise our fleet by purchasing the most advanced planes available in the world,' Al-Molhem said.

  • Saudi's land transport sector rising

    Ali Hassan Naqoor, deputy chairman of Saudi Arabia's National Transport Committee, has said the private and public investments in the land transport sector during the last five years are estimated at nearly SR300bn, Arab News has reported. The sector's annual growth is estimated at 10%, while the pilgrim transport sector is growing at 10% to 15% annually, he said. 'There are now 16 transport companies, which own more than 20,000 buses of different types and models,' Naqoor told the newspaper.

  • Sewedy's nine-month profit down 29%

    The largest Arab cable maker by market value, El Sewedy Cables has posted a 29% decline in nine-month net profit to EGP549.8m ($101m) due to a drop prices for cables and copper rods, Reuters has reported. The Egypt-based firm has said its revenues for the first nine months also dropped 24% to EGP6.82bn led by a 43% drop in revenues from exports. However, revenues from sales in Egypt gained nearly 9%, the company said.

  • Sharjah airport traffic up 8% rise

    Sharjah International Airport has reported an 8% rise in traffic in the first nine months of this year compared to the same period a year ago. Roughly 4.24 million passengers passed through the airporst in the first three quarters of '09, while the number of flights rose to a record 45,022 from 44,086 flights in 2008. The volume of cargo handled at the airport had reached 373,745 tons, with air cargo showing a slight increase to 35,646 tons during the period, the airport said.

  • Sharjah's tourism sector up 4% in Q3

    The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority has said the emirate's tourism sector had experienced 4% growth in the third quarter of 2009, compared to the first quarter of this year. 'Sharjah will continue to establish tourism oriented projects and developments to attract tourists and investors, despite the global financial crisis. The first of these projects will be announced in Q1 2010,' Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qassimi, Chairman of SCTDA said.

  • Sharp rise in tourist numbers to Lebanon

    Tourism numbers in Lebanon have seen a sharp rise in the first 10 months of the year. The Lebanese tourism ministry has reported a 42.7% increase compared to the same period in 2008, adding that numbers are up 84% compared to the same period of 2007. More than 1.5 million tourists have visited Lebanon so far this year, with a record one million tourists landing in the country during July alone, the ministry said. The bulk have been expatriates or visitors from the Gulf region. The ministry ho

  • Sheikh Mohammed reshuffles key Dubai posts

    Management of Dubai’s financial centre and investment company replaced

  • Shell delays deadlines for Qatar gas schemes

    Pearl and Qatargas 4 projects to be completed at the end of 2010

  • Shell revises cost of Pearl gas-to-liquids plant in Qatar

    Facility set to cost between $18bn and $19bn

  • Shuaa Capital pulls back losses to $73m

    Investment bank narrows quarterly loss and repays AED100m of debt

  • Siam Cement, Qatar ink Vietnam deal

    Qatar Petroleum and Thailand's largest industrial conglomerate, Siam Cement have agreed to invest in a petrochemical complex in Vietnam worth up to $4bn, Reuters has reported. Qatar Petroleum International, Siam Cement, and a trading firm will hold 71% of the project while the remaining 29% share will go to Vietnamese partners including Petrovietnam and Vinachem. Qatar Petroleum would provide feedstock for the project.

  • Singapore firm signs Salalah contract

    Hyflux to design and supply desalination plant at independent water and power project

  • Sipchem begins start-up of its acetic acid plant

    The Saudi International Petrochemical Co (Sipchem) expects to begin exports of its first shipment of acetic acid in January. The company has started its trial operations at its plant in Jubail on Sunday. The annual production capacity of the new plant is 460 thousand metric tonnes of acetic acid and 50 thousand metric tonnes of Acetic Anhydride.

  • Six firms compete for Bahrain oil and gas headquarters deal

    Atkins bids low on contract covering design of towers

  • Soaring growth of Dubai Airshow

    The Dubai Airshow is rated as being the third largest in the world, despite being one of the youngest. Phil Blizzard talks to Alison Weller, Director, Fairs & Exhibitions, Aerospace, co-organiser along with the Government of Dubai, about the shows dynamic growth, especially in the previous three events, and also looks at the state of global aviation market. First posted September 2009

  • Sonatrach settles Gassi Touil dispute

    Algerian energy giant must pay Spanish firms for share in gas development

  • Sorouh tenders Al-Ghadeer infrastructure work

    Successful bidder to build roads and drainage networks

  • South Korean firms secure $5.2bn Ruwais refinery deals

    SK Engineering & Construction and GS Engineering & Construction win oil expansion contracts

  • South Koreans clean up on $10bn Ruwais refinery

    Contract awards confirm South Korean firms’ competitive dominance

  • Sterling Energy to start drilling in Kurdistan in December

    Potential reserves of 804 million barrels available in Sangaw North Block

  • Sudan: Adolescent girls’ initiative consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services comprising a baseline survey for an adolescent girls’ initiative. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • Sudan: Entrepreneurship development strategy consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for the design and implementation of an entrepreneurship development strategy. Closing date: 13 November 2009

  • Sudan: Ferry boat

    Supply, delivery and commissioning of a ferry boat. Closing date: 24 December 2009

  • Sudan: Project monitoring consultancy services

    Provision of consultancy services comprising a monitoring agent for projects and programmes financed by the national multi-donor trust fund. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • Sudanese Egyptian Bank appoints new chief

    Managing director to supervise expansion and attract investors

  • Suez lime to open new plant

    Suez Lime, a joint venture between Italian Unicalce and Egypt-based Suez Cement, has announced plans to set up a new plant to produce lime with a capacity of 300 tons per day. The first kiln will be ready by 2011, followed by the installation of a second kiln that will bring annual production capacity to 200,000 tons, Suez Cement said in a statement. Lime is an aggregate used in steel, chemical, environmental, agri-food, paper and building sectors.

  • Survey: Long haul leisure travel to increase

    According to YouGov Siraj's Travel Tracker survey, a research tool which tracks travel trends quarterly, long haul leisure trips are expected to make a comeback, after being drastically affected over the last year. A total of 31% of the respondents who have been holding back are now planning to travel in the future, the survey showed. Forty-six percent of respondents are planning to travel for business in the coming months, and 35% for leisure purposes, compared to only 24% of business and 19

  • Swiss contractor secures Saudi power deal

    ABB set to improve efficiency of 22 distribution substations

  • Swiss contractor wins $120m Saudi university deal

    Saudi Electricity Company awards contract to supply three substations

  • Swiss firm secures oil pipeline work in Emirates

    Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline to transport crude from Abu Dhabi to Fujairah

  • Swiss firm secures Saudi substation work

    Saudi Electricity awards $120m construction deal in Central region

  • Syria opens coastal radar stations

    The General Department of Harbours in the Syrian port city of Lattakia has announced the completion of the installation of five radar stations along the coastline that cover the Syrian territorial waters and is aimed at guaranteeing the safety of ships, the state news agency SANA has reported. Two watch towers have been also completed in Lattakia and Tartous, in addition to preparing the two harbours to use a radar system for controlling maritime movement using the VTMS system, in addition to

  • Syria: Alkaline accumulators

    Supply of alkaline accumulators for locomotives. Closing date: 13 January 2010

  • Syria: Capacitor banks

    Supply of 20kV capacitor banks. Closing date: 18 January 2010

  • Syria: Cathodic protection transformers

    Supply of cathodic protection transformers. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Syria: Cathodic protection transformers

    Supply of cathodic protection transformers and rectifiers. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Syria: Corrosion inhibitor

    Supply of corrosion inhibitor. Closing date: 21 January 2010

  • Syria: Demulsifier

    Supply of demulsifier. Closing date: 18 January 2010

  • Syria: Diesel engine parts

    Supply of spare parts for diesel engines. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Syria: Digital level transmitters

    Supply of digital level transmitters. Closing date: 10 January 2010

  • Syria: Drilling line

    Supply of a drilling line. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Syria: Electric bottom hole heating system

    Supply of an electric bottom hole heating system. Closing date: 21 December 2009

  • Syria: Electric motors

    Supply of electric motors. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Syria: Mobile wire line unit

    Supply of a truck-mounted complete mobile wire line unit. Closing date: 23 December 2009

  • Syria: Mud pumps

    Supply of complete triplex mud pump units. Closing date: 21 January 2010

  • Syria: Power cables

    Supply of power cables. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • Syria: Refractory hydraulic binding

    Supply of refractory hydraulic binding. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Syria: Rubber insulator switch disconnectors

    Supply of outdoor, off-load rubber insulator switch disconnectors. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • Syria: Well pit sludge treatment

    Treatment of well pit sludge in oil fields. Closing date: 24 January 2010

  • Syria: Wind park development

    Provision of developers/sponsors to develop a 50-100MW wind park. Closing date: 25 January 2010

  • Tabreed posts quarterly profit

    Abu Dhabi-based National Central Cooling (Tabreed) has reported Dhs23.6m in Q3 profit, up from Dhs15.5m the utility firm earned a year ago, Reuters has reported. Before minority interests, quarterly profit for the period fell to Dhs23.5m against Dhs24.5m in the year-ago period, Tabreed said in a statement. Profit for the nine month period up to September 30 was Dhs53.7m, up from Dhs49m in the same period in 2008.

  • Taqa awards gas storage building deal to Fluor

    Contractor to build a gas compression and treatment facility at Bergermeer

  • Technip wins $408m Abu Dhabi gas compressor deal

    Plan to boost emirate’s gas production by 150 million cubic feet a day

  • The Wave Muscat invites interest in hotels

    Two resorts and staff accommodation to be built

  • Thermadyne names regional distributor

    Dubai-based Euro Facade Products (EFP) has announced it has been appointed regional Original Equipment Manufacturer for US-based manufacturer of welding and cutting equipment, Thermadyne. Under the agreement, EFP will be responsible for distributing Thermadyne's range of Automated Plasma Cutting machines and accessories in the Middle East and North Africa.

  • Tractebel secures Saudi network contract

    Belgian contractor signs $7.4m deal to protect transmission grid

  • Tunisia: Educational institute construction

    Construction of an educational institute. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • Tunisia: Road rehabilitation works

    Carrying out rehabilitation works for the development of a road network. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • UAE central bank considers new rules for bad loans

    New regulations will half time for loans to be classified as non-performing

  • UAE central bank offers financial sector liquidity injection

    Fresh liquidity offered in wake of Dubai World restructuring

  • UAE hotel revenues, occupancy tumble in October

    Hotels in the UAE saw the sharpest declines in revenue and occupancy levels in the region during October compared to the same month a year ago, according to a new report by STR Global. Revenue per available room (RevPar) in UAE hotels plunged 32.1% to $194.5 and occupancy dropped 10% to 74.4% in the month. STR said the steep declines were due to falling demand and, in the case of Dubai, rising supply. Riyadh reported the largest occupancy increase in the region, up 7.9% to 70.4%, followed by

  • UAE money supply slows in October

    Inflationary pressures on the economy continue to decrease

  • UAE prepares new airline licensing rules

    Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director-General of the General Civil Aviation Authority has said the UAE government is preparing a new airline licensing regime that promises more control over the airlines operating in the country or using its airspace, Wam has reported. The new measures, which will be implemented next year, are being adopted following the growing number of air accidents around the world, he said. Thirty operators were banned from operating in the country and more would be outlawed

  • UAE: Architectural consultancy services

    Provision of architectural consultancy services. Closing date: 7 December 2009

  • UAE: Cables and power distribution boards

    Supply and installation of cables and power distribution boards. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • UAE: Chemicals

    Supply of chemicals and consumables for power stations. Closing date: 22 December 2009

  • UAE: Hospital ranking system consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for the development and implementation of a hospital ranking system. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • UAE: Irrigation and agricultural works

    Carrying out urgent irrigation and agricultural works. Closing date: 14 December 2009

  • UAE: Medical equipment

    Supply of medical equipment. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • UAE: Metro retail services

    Provision of retail services at Dubai Metro stations. Closing date: 17 December 2009

  • UAE: Parking facilities maintenance

    Maintenance of parking facilities. Closing date: 6 December 2009

  • UAE: Power cable laying

    Carrying out power cable laying works. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • UAE: Power plant boundary fencing

    Supply and installation of chain link fencing along the boundary of a power plant. Closing date: 23 November 2009

  • UAE: Power plant facilities modification

    Modification and reconstruction of facilities for a fire station at a power plant. Closing date: 9 December 2009

  • UAE: Radio links

    Supply of ultra-high capacity radio links. Closing date: 22 November 2009

  • UAE: Transformers

    Supply of pole-mounted transformers. Closing date: 20 December 2009

  • UAE: Wireless temperature monitoring

    Supply of a wireless temperature monitoring and alarm system. Closing date: 15 December 2009

  • UK firm in administration over dispute with Maersk Oil Qatar

    SLP Engineering contract covers offshore Al-Shaheen oil field work

  • UK firm secures Kuwait airport design contract

    Authority awards $66.7m passenger terminal construction work to Foster & Partners

  • UK firm wins Kuwait airport design contract

    Kuwait's ministry of public works has awarded UK-based Foster & Partners a KD19m ($66.7m) contract to design the country's new airport passenger terminal, Bloomberg has reported. The new KD213m terminal, scheduled for completion by November 2016, will have an annual capacity of 13 million passengers, taking the emirate's total capacity to 20 million.

  • UK Government organisation to source UAE partnerships in defence

    Richard Paniguian, Head of the Defence and Security Organisation, UK, talks to Phil Blizzard at the Dubai Airshow on their trade and investment activites overseas. He also talks about the oportunities for business partnerships in the UAE and elaborates on the sectors they are interested in.

  • Unemployment, H1N1 pose challenges for tourism industry

    The biggest hurdles that the global tourism industry faces on its path to recovery are high unemployment and a potential worsening of the H1N1 crisis, Geoffrey Lipman, Assistant Secretary General, United Nations World Tourism Organisation said today at the Middle East Tourism Marketing Summit 2009.

  • US agency suspends new Agility contracts

    Kuwait's Agility has said that the US Defence Logistics Agency has temporarily suspended new contract awards to the firm until a legal dispute is resolved over alleged overcharging on food contracts, Wall Street Journal has reported. Agility, which denies the allegations, was indicted in Atlanta on multiple charges of conspiracy and fraud relating to $8.5bn worth of contracts to supply food to US troops in Iraq, Kuwait and Jordan. Defence and government contracts account for at least 30% of t

  • US firm wins Saudi radar contract

    Raytheon to manufacture, install and maintain 21 radars across the kingdom

  • View Systems announces orders in UAE, Saudi

    US-based View Systems, a security and tele-data solutions provider, said its business partner, Belcom, a Belhasa International Company, has received a second round of orders for ViewScan units and other View Systems products from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bangladesh, and India. The orders have been placed by a mixture of government and corporate clientele, the company said. ViewScan is a computer-based system that can scan up to 1200 people per hour. As a person passes through the portal, a phot

  • Wataniya adds Jeddah service

    Kuwait National Airways (Wataniya) has announced the addition of a new daily service to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from November 1. The airline will provide First Class and Premium Economy Class seats to business and leisure travellers between Kuwait and Jeddah, Wataniya said in a statement.

  • Wataniya Airways to expand routes in 2010

    Kuwaiti carrier plans to offer flights to Alexandria and Iran

  • Windows 7 gains market share

    According to Internet metrics vendor Net Applications, Microsoft's Windows 7 has passed the 5% market share milestone last weekend, which put it above the total market share of all versions of Apple's Mac OS X, PC World magazine has reported. The first week after its launch, the new operating system had accounted for 2.7% of all operating systems used worldwide; it climbed to 3.3% in the second week, to 3.7% in the third and to 4% during the fourth week post-debut.

  • Windows 7 market share hits 4%

    A report by statistics firm Net Applications shows that that Microsoft Windows 7's share of the overall PC market continues to rise steadily, having passed 4% by November 9. Microsoft Vista, by comparison, had reached 4% in June 2007, six months after its general release to consumers in January 2007. The software giant is hoping that widespread adoption of Windows 7, by both consumers and the enterprise, will help reverse a declining revenue trend.

  • Work on Qatar-Bahrain causeway to begin in Q1

    Construction of a 40km causeway that would connect Qatar to Bahrain will start in the first quarter of 2010, Reuters has reported. Jaber al-Mohannadi, general manager of the Qatar-Bahrain Causeway Foundation, said construction was initially scheduled to start in 2009, but the addition of rail lines delayed the project. The causeway will be ready by 2015, al-Mohannadi told a conference in Abu Dhabi.

  • WorleyParsons to advise Jordan on nuclear plant

    Australian firm to carry out pre-construction work and will help choose technology

  • Yemen: Energy project consultancy

    Provision of consultancy services for a rural energy access project. Closing date: 16 December 2009

  • Yemen: Road and drainage project

    Repair and resurfacing of a double-lane carriageway and carrying out drainage erosion protection works. Closing date: 13 December 2009

  • Yemen: Road management project

    Supply and installation of IT software and hardware to upgrade a road management system. Closing date: 20 January 2010

  • Yemen: Water pipes

    Supply of uPVC pipes and fittings as part of a groundwater and soil conservation project. Closing date: 28 December 2009

  • Yemenia to buy 10 Airbus A320s

    Yemenia Airlines announced today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire ten Airbus A320 family aircraft. The deal, which requires approval of the board of the airline, is worth about $700m, said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer.

  • Zad eyes IPO for new poultry firm

    Qatar-based Zad Holding has announced plans to sell a 50% stake in a new poultry company under creation, including through an initial public offering, Reuters has reported. A 20% stake will be offered to strategic partners, while the remaining 30% will go to the public as an IPO, Zad said.

  • Zagzoog, Hisense to build appliance plant

    Saudi Arabia-based Zagzoog and Chinese firm Hisense International Marketing plan to set up a home appliances factory in the kingdom, Saudi Gazette has reported. The proposed plant will start by manufacturing refrigerators, followed by TV sets. Construction of the factory is expected to start in 2010 and will be ready within 18 months.

  • Zaid Al Siksek, CEO, Health Authority, Abu Dhabi

    Abu Dhabi has rolled out private healthcare insurance for locals and expats as part of its plans to offer world-class healthcare.

  • Zamil and Petrofac to create service centre in Saudi Arabia

    Al-Khobar facility set to open in early 2010

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