Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (Seha) has invited contractors to submit bids by 15 October for the estimated AED2.6bn ($708m) contract to build the new hospital it is planning in Al-Ain.

Seha first tendered the contract in 2010 and had selected the joint venture of the local Al-Shafar General Contracting and the local National Projects Construction (NPC) with Japan’s Shimizu Corporation for the works (MEED 3:12:10).

Earlier in 2011, Seha chose to retender the contract and in June it invited contracting companies to prequalify for the deal (MEED 10:6:11).

The contract involves building a 688-bed hospital. It will cover 358,000 square metres, with underground parking for 1,500 cars. The design has been prepared by a joint venture of Switzerland’s ICME Healthcare, Germany’s Faust Consult Architects & Engineers and Germany’s Obermeyer Engineering Consulting.

Seha has invited contractors that prequalified in 2010 for its Al-Ain and Mafraq hospital tenders to prequalify for the new tender this year.

The estimated $800m contract for Mafraq hospital was awarded to the joint venture of the local/Australian Al-Habtoor Leighton Group and South Africa’s Murray & Roberts Contractors (Middle East) earlier this year.

Mafraq hospital will have 690 beds. It will cover an area of 245,000 sq m and will have underground parking for 1,300 vehicles. US-based Burt Hill is the design consultant.

US-based Allen & Shariff Corporation is project manager for both schemes.

Seha is also developing the Tawam hospital project in Al-Ain. Abu Dhabi-government controlled investment vehicle Mubadala Development Company was previously handling the project. It cancelled tenders for the project in early February 2010 after contractors had submitted bid for the design and build contract (MEED 5:2:10).

Abu Dhabi has been slow to award contracts for 2011. The total value of construction and infrastructure contracts awarded in Abu Dhabi during the second quarter fell by 81 per cent, leaving contractors waiting for awards on a series of major projects.