France’s Bouygues confirmed it has won the QR4.8bn ($1.3bn) main construction contract to build the Barwa Financial District in Qatar.

MEED reported in early October that the project’s client, the local Barwa Real Estate Company, had selected Bouygues for the three-and-a-half-year contract which involves building nine high-rise office towers between 18 and 52 floors, a five-star hotel, a retail shopping centre, a conference centre and 5,000 parking spaces in the West Bay area of Doha. The total built-up area is about 695,000 square metres (MEED 2:10:09).

Bouygues will carry out the work in collaboration with Qatari contractors Aljaber Engineering and Midmac Contracting Company.

Swissboring, part of Italy’s Trevi Group, won the estimated $60m foundation work contract for the development in September 2008.

Hill International and Louis Berger are the project managers. Qatar Project Management Company appointed the US-based team in December 2008 on behalf of Barwa.