The local ABV Rock Group has submitted the low estimated bid of SR24bn ($6.4bn) for the contract to build the Security Forces Medical Cities for the Interior Ministry in Riyadh and Jeddah.

The ministry received bids from 10 contractors on 7 August, according to sources in Riyadh.

The other bidders include:

• Al-Arrab Contracting Company (local)
• Al-Mabani General Contractors (local)
• Al-Yamama (local)
• Saudi Binladin Group (local)
•  El-Seif Engineering Contracting Company (local)
•  Saudi Oger (local)

The scope of the work will include construction and fit-out of the medical complexes, one will be located in Riyadh and one in Jeddah, which will each have a total built-up area of 1.3 million square metres.

The two medical cities will have the same design and will both include three hospitals and all related medical and residential facilities. The medical facilities will have a total built-up area of about 400,000 sq m.

Each complex will also contain academic and clinical centres and a research centre.  The residential villas and apartments will have a total built-up area of about 500,000 sq m. The developments are also planned to have office buildings and service stations. The medical complexes will have about 200,000 sq m of car parking.

The consultant for the project is the local office of Lebanon’s Dar al-Handasah.

The Interior Ministry has tendered a number of high-value construction contracts so far in 2011. In July, it received 11 bids on 12 July for the project to build the third phase of its security compounds programme.

The local Seder Construction Company submitted the low bid for the project, estimated to be about SR10bn ($2.7bn). The bid was considerably lower than the previously estimated SR20bn value of the project.

The project is the third contract to be tendered for the programme to build a network of security compounds throughout Saudi Arabia, which will cover the construction, operation and maintenance of 28 different types of facilities at more than 50 locations throughout the kingdom. The facilities will be used to house, educate and train members of Saudi Arabia’s public security, civil defence service, fire service, police force, passports division and special security and investigative forces.

The majority of the security premises will be built in and around Riyadh, but facilities will also be built in the provinces of Qassim, Hail, Tabuk, Jeddah, Medina, Taif, Al-Jouf and on Saudi Arabia’s Northern borders (MEED 11:7:11).