UK-based consultant Atkins has been appointed as the lead designer by the consortium building the Gold Line of the Doha Metro network.

“We have been awarded the role of lead designer for the Doha Metro Gold Line in Qatar,” Atkins said in a statement.

“Atkins has been appointed by the consortium of contractors that is delivering the Gold Line on behalf of Qatar Railways Company, comprising Greek contractor Aktor, Yapi Merkezi and STFA from Turkey, India’s Larsen & Toubro and the local Qatari company AlJaber Engineering. The total capital cost of the project is more than £2.5bn [$4.2bn] and our design role is worth about £80m to the group over the next couple of years.”

Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail) formally awarded the estimated QR12bn ($3.3bn) contract to build the underground sections of Doha Metro’s Gold Line to the contracting consortium on 23 April.

The group was selected for the deal in mid-March after receiving a conditional letter of award sent to the Aktor-led group and the consortium of Germany’s Hochtief, the local Al-Jaber Trading, Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC), the local Marbu Contracting Company and the local/German Lusail Hochtief. The letters were issued to give contractors a final chance to submit their best commercial offers.

Firms submitted fresh prices at the end of last year. Bids were originally submitted in early 2013, but after several months of evaluating bids, Qatar Rail decided to seek revised prices after it reduced the scope of some parts of the Doha metro scheme, including the Gold Line.

The change was made so the company could concentrate on the key elements of the network it needs in place for the 2022 Fifa World Cup. Despite the reduction in scope, the Gold Line is the largest construction contract to be tendered for Doha Metro.

Atkins is already working on the Doha Metro as the lead designer for the Red Line South for a consortium led by the local/French QDVC.