Amman has reopened talks with a consortium of Kuwaiti real estate group Aknan Global and Spanish engineering firm Ineco. It hopes to award the $360m contract by early May. The consortium was the runner-up to build the 28-kilometre-long line. However, Amman recently terminated its agreement with the winning consortium.

Jordanian Transport Minister Alaa Batayneh said in March that the original winning group, which included Pakistan’s Sadullah Khan & Brothers, and CETC International of China, had not met the project’s conditions (MEED 25:03:08).

Amman is hopeful construction of the railway can begin by July.