The Public Works Ministry has appointed Lebanon’s Dar al-Handasah as the design review and construction supervision consultant for the Subiya causeway and Doha link projects.

The consultant was competing against Canada’s SNC Lavalin and UK-based Halcrow, now part of US-based CH2M Hill, for the work.

Contractors are preparing to submit bids on 1 November for the contract to design and build the estimated $1bn Doha Link bridge.

The project, which involves building a crossing that will connect Shuwaikh to the port village of Doha in the Jahra region, has been out to tender for more than a year. Bids were initially due in November 2012.

The bridge will be about 16 kilometres long and will contain three traffic lanes and an emergency lane in each direction. The ministry prequalified 12 local/international groups for the tender in July 2012. The prequalifiers are:

• Abdulaziz Abdulmohsin al-Rashed & Sons (local)/Samsung C&T (South Korea)
• Alamiah Building Company (local)/Strabag (Austria)
• Al-Hani Construction & Trading Company (local)/Sinohydro Corporation (China)
• Bayan National Trading Company (local)/Salini Costruttori (Italy)
• Copri Construction Projects Company (local)/China Major Bridge Engineering Company (CMBE)
• First United General Trading & Contracting Company (local)/Obrascon Huarte Lain (OHL) (Spain)
• Green Line General Trading & Contracting (local)/China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC)
• Gulf Environment General Trading & Contracting (local)/Daewoo Engineering & Construction (South Korea)
• Hamad Mohamed al-Wazzan General Trading & Contracting (local)/Saudi Binladin Group
• Khalid & Khalid Abbas General Trading & Contracting (local)/GS Engineering & Construction Corporation (South Korea)
• Kuwait Company for Process Plant Construction & Contracting (KCPC) (local)/Pizzarotti (Italy)
• Tarbili Holding Company (local)/Daelim Industrial Company(South Korea)

The contract to build the estimated KD720m ($2.6bn) Subiya causeway was awarded to a consortium led by South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering & Construction Company in October 2012.

The consortium also includes the local Combined Group Contracting Company. The causeway will cross Kuwait Bay, linking Kuwait City with the Subiya promontory and Bubiyan Island, where various major projects are proposed. The planned causeway will be 37.5km long and incorporate a bridge spanning 150-200 metres.