The bidders are understood to include the US' Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company, with the local AA Nass; Royal Boskalis Westminsterand Ballast Ham Dredging, both of the Netherlands; Geneva-registered Archirodon Construction (Overseas); and Belgium's Dredging International. The scope of work covers the reclamation of 302,000 square metres of land offshore Hawar to create 32 islands, ranging in size from 1,000-5,000 square metres and one large island that will be subdivided into 150 plots ranging from 500-1,500 square metres. Denmark's COWI-Almoayed Gulf has completed the masterplan and the detailed marine studies.

SDC is planning to begin marketing the properties, which are open to foreign ownership, in the second quarter (Bahrain, MEED Special Report, 28:9:01, pages 35-36).