Egypt's Ahmed Abdul Warith ConsultingEngineersis low bidder at RO 318,000 ($837,000) for the consultancy contract, followed by Universal Consulting Engineering (Oman) and the local/Dutch Tebodin & Partners. The other bidders are India's Consulting Engineering Services, Belgrade-based Energoprojekt, Lebanon's Khatib & Alami, the UK's Mott MacDonald, and Al-Abrajand Conser Engineering & Consulting, both local. The 28-month contract calls for supervision of designs, construction and commissioning of the network, which will include a product water reservoir and forward pumping station at Sohar, service reservoirs in seven wilayats and pipelines and pumping stations along the route.

About 18 companies have so far picked up tender documents for the 20-month turnkey contract for the network. An award is awaited on the consultancy contract for the power transmission network to serve the IWPP, following the submission of three bids in June. The successful bidder will oversee the local Bahwan Engineering Company, which was awarded the contract to install the grid in early August. The client on both projects is the Housing, Electricity & Water Ministry (MEED 25:6:04).