Contractors prequalify for Louvre Abu Dhabi deal

08 October 2009

Tenders for Saadiyat Island museum to be issued by end of October

Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Development & Investment Corporation (TDIC) has informed contractors that have prequalified to tender for the estimated $1bn contract to build the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum on Saadiyat Island.

TDIC plans to issue tender documents by the end of October.

The prequalifiers include the local/UK Aldar Laing O’Rourke; the local/Australian Al-Habtoor Leighton Group in a joint venture with South Africa’s Murray & Roberts Contractors (Middle East); a French joint venture of Bouygues and Vinci Grand Projets; Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC); Germany’s Ed Zueblin; Australia’s Multiplex with the UK/local Mivan Depa; Brazil’s Odebrecht; Oger Abu Dhabi, the local affiliate of Saudi Oger; South Korea’s Samsung Corporation; the local/Belgian Six Construct Abu Dhabi; and Japan’s Taisei Corporation.

TDIC selected Germany’s Bauer to carry out enabling works on the project in mid-July (MEED 11:8:09).

The UK’s Buro Happold is the engineer, France’s Jean Nouvel is the architect and US-based Aecom is the programme manager.

The governments of Abu Dhabi and France signed a 30-year cultural accord in 2007 that included building the Louvre.

The Louvre is one of five schemes planned for Saadiyat Island’s cultural district. The others are the Sheikh Zayed National Museum, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Museum, a performing arts centre and a maritime museum.

TDIC invited firms to prequalify for the contract to build the Guggenheim in September. Designed by US-based Frank Gehry, the 45,000-square-metre museum will feature art and technology exhibits (MEED 27:9:09).

TDIC also received prequalification documents in August for the contracts to build the Zayed National Museum. It will be designed by the UK’s Foster & Partners and will feature exhibits on the life of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, founding president of the UAE and former ruler of Abu Dhabi.

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