Contractors have been given two more weeks to prepare prices for the contract to build the hospital and medical university at Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO), which will be run by Saudi Arabia’s Dr Soliman Fakeeh Hospital (DSFH).

The new closing date is 2 May.

Known as University Hospital, the project, which is estimated to cost AED1bn ($272m) to build, will be constructed in two phases. The 300-bed teaching hospital is expected to be completed by mid-2017, followed by the medical college in 2019.

The entire project will stretch across 150,000 square metres. The hospital will focus on family healthcare and patient-centred services, targeting the growing community of residents in DSO, as well as neighbouring areas.

The consultant is Italy’s Studio Altieri.

Established in 1978, DSFH is the one of the largest private hospitals in the Middle East, with a total capacity of 600 beds. A tertiary referral hospital located in Jeddah, DSFH is visited by 800,000 patients a year, who are served by a workforce of 3,000 staff.