The New Doha International Airport Steering Committee has received bids for the contract to build a railway station at the $11bn New Doha International airport.

On 3 November, companies including the UAE/Australian Al-Habtoor Leighton Group; UAE-based Al-Naboodah Contracting; the local Aljaber Engineering; the UAE’s Arabtec Construction; Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company and its local partner Teyseer Contracting Company; Germany’s Ed Zueblin; and a consortium of the UAE’s International Trading & Contracting Company with Singapore’s Sembawang Engineers & Contractors, all bid for the job.

Contractors expect the steering committee to award the contract in mid-December.

The Passenger Rail Station Box project covers the construction of a railway terminus for an express rail line connecting the airport to stations in Doha and other rail networks.

According to sources close to the project, the steering committee plans to finish the station in time for the opening of the first two phases of the new airport in 2011 (MEED 22:10:09).

The tender is the first construction contract on the five rail lines Doha plans to build over the next 10 years.

UK-based Mace International is the project manager for the scheme.

Doha plans to build several rail lines and other public transport networks over the next decade. The Trade & Business Ministry plans to invite consultants to bid in 2010 for a national railway system.

Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company, in partnership with Deutsche Bahn, has already developed a conceptual design for Qatar’s national rail network.

The companies’ multi-billion-dollar concept design has five components: an east coast rail link between Ras Laffan and Mesaieed, a high-speed link from Doha to Bahrain across the Qatar-Bahrain Causeway, a freight link connecting to the planned GCC rail network, a metro network in Doha, and a light rail network serving residential developments.