Kuwait University is drawing up terms of reference for one of the largest design consultancy contracts on its planned $3,000 million new campus at Shadidiyah. The tender for the contract, covering the project?s overall infrastructure, is expected to be issued soon, with prequalified international architects having until the summer to submit their proposals.

With a construction value in excess of KD 100 million ($345 million), the consultancy contract covers the design of campus infrastructure over an area of 5 square kilometres, including the design of 15 kilometres of ring-road, 6 kilometres of tunnels, landscaping and earthworks. Design work should be completed by early 2007, with a view to starting construction work soon after.

The design work will be carried out within the parameters of the masterplan recently completed by the Canadian/local design team of Webb Zerafa Menkes Housden and SSH. The Australian/local team of Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (SMEC) and KEO International Consultants will help the client with design supervision and the preparation of tender documents in its role as project management consultant (PMC ? MEED 9:12:05).

The new gender-segregated campus is aimed at consolidating all the university?s various faculties in one location. It will be able to accommodate up to 30,000 students in more than 25 faculty buildings. It will also contain a 600-bed hospital for the medical faculty, car parks with space for more than 32,000 vehicles, dormitories, sports facilities and auditoriums (see Special Report, pages 50-51).

Uniquely for Kuwait, the university has an exemption from going through either the Planning Ministry for design contracts or the Ministry of Public Works for construction contracts. The new campus, scheduled to open in 2014, is being paid for directly by the government, which has pledged up to KD 1,000 million ($3,448 million) in funding for the project (MEED 24:9:04).