Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has received proposals from firms for the contract to provide consultancy services to the ministry’s project management office (PMO).

It is understood that the firms that have participated in the tender include:

• Aecom (US)
• Atkins (UK)
• CH2M (US)
• Hill International (US)
• Parsons (US)

According to regional projects tracker MEED Projects, the ministry has about $13bn of projects, of which $11bn are in the pre execution phase.

The request for proposals (RFP) is the second PMO deal to be tendered in Saudi Arabia. Last year, consultants submitted proposals to provide consultancy services for the National Project Management Office (NPMO), which will oversee future capital expenditure projects in the kingdom. An award is expected during the first quarter of this year.

The kingdom is turning to programme management, a methodology for managing large and complex schemes, as a way of containing spending and increasing returns from infrastructure investments.

The government has established a unit to control state expenditure. It has already cut future project spending in the kingdom by SR100bn ($27bn), and could slash a further SR531bn. In early January, the UK’s PwC has been appointed by the Saudi government to help it reprioritise its future capital spending.

The study involves assessing and planning future spending for several of Saudi Arabia’s largest government departments, including the health, education, housing and transport ministries. It will focus on capital expenditure plans, but will also consider operational costs.