Bechtel announces three more subcontracts

23 May 2003
The US' Bechtelhas confirmed the award of three more subcontracts on the Iraq capital reconstruction programme, bringing the total so far to 13. Saudi Arabia's Al-Tamimi Global Company, the US' Great Lakes Dredge & Dock and the UK's Halcrow Group have all been mobilised as Bechtel pushes ahead with its programme of infrastructure assessments and emergency repairs.

Al-Tamimi's Kuwait office has the contract to establish a pioneer camp for Bechtel engineers and managers in Baghdad. The camp will be Bechtel's third base in the country. Saudi Arabia's National Catering Company has the contract to establish a pioneer camp at Umm Qasr port and Kuwait's Al-Bahar & Bardawil Specialities has the subcontract to set up a similar facility at Basra (MEED 9:5:03).

Great Lakes has been awarded a third subcontract by Bechtel, the latest covering bathymetric surveys at Umm Qasr. The Chicago-based firm's other two contracts, both at the port, involve initial emergency dredging and surveying abandoned dredges. Halcrow's contract is to provide minor civil engineering support to Bechtel. Bechtel is aiming to have Umm Qasr port open at limited capacity by 15 June and to bring the old and new ports up to full capacity by 30 September. Iraqis have also been employed by Bechtel to clean and repair grain facilities at the port to aid food processing and distribution.

By 21 May, more than 4,500 companies had registered with Bechtel for future subcontract work. On the same day, Bechtel held its first conference in Washington for contractors interested in working in Iraq. Two others - in London on 23 May and Kuwait on 28 May - are planned. Bechtel says that companies would be categorised according to services and capability, then request for proposal (RFP) packages would be sent out to registered companies as needs are identified. Most of Bechtel's work in Iraq will be subcontracted and, aside from the initial tranche of emergency contracts, subcontracts will be competitively tendered.

Bechtel says that its work in Iraq is being hampered by looting, unexploded ordnance, travel restrictions, lack of engineering information due to lost records and poor communications. However, a company spokeswoman said on 21 May that significant progress had still been made in a short space of time.

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