Kuwait’s Amiri Diwan has announced that it has cancelled the tender for the construction contract for the Jahra New Hospital expansion project.

In a notice on the Central Tenders Committee (CTC) website, the Amiri Diwan said that rather than reissuing the tender, it is going to award the contract through a process of “negotiating” with the companies that have submitted bids for the tender.

Last year, the local Burhan International Construction Company submitted the low bid of $1.3bn for the contract, but it was cancelled when the firm failed to submit a performance bond. The tender was reissued in January.

The following six companies submitted bids for the retender:

• Mohammed Abdulmohsin al-Kharafi & Sons ($1.29bn)
• Bayan National Trading Company ($1.33bn)
• Combined Group Contracting Co ($1.46bn)
• Alghanim International General Trading & Contracting ($1.55bn)
• Al-Hani Construction & Trading Co ($1.58bn)
• Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading Co ($1.69bn)

The scheme entails the construction, furnishing and operational maintenance of a 1,157-bed hospital adjacent to the existing Jahra hospital in the Jahra governorate of Kuwait. It is part of a plan to expand nine hospitals across the country to improve the provision of public health services. The expansions will add 5,000 beds to the current capacity of the state’s hospitals.

Several contracts have been awarded and a few tenders are still being reviewed under the programme.

The first tender to be awarded was for the construction of a 240-bed expansion to the Al-Razi hospital. The local Alghanim International signed a $112m deal to perform the work in November 2012.

In May 2013, a joint venture led by Kuwait’s Associated Construction Company signed a $343m contract with the ministry to expand the Al-Amiri hospital, which will add 460 beds to the existing facility.

The following month, a joint venture of Metallurgical Corporation of China and the local Al-Tawbad General Trading and Contracting Company submitted a low bid of $184m for a deal to expand the Infectious Diseases Hospital in the Al-Asimah governorate.

In November, India’s Shapoorji Pallonji, along with local partner Al-Sager General Trading & Contracting Company, submitted the low bid for a contract to build an annex to Kuwait’s Al-Sabah hospital. The Health Ministry received a total of nine bids for the deal.

Last month, the CTC approved the award of a KD265m ($940.7m) contract to the local Sayed Hamid Behbehani & Sons to build a 955-bed annex to Farwaniya Hospital. CTC approval is the final step before a formal contract award is made.

The Health Ministry is currently reviewing bids for a contract to build an extension to Al-Adan Hospital. A total of nine bids were submitted for the contract. Local Khalid Ali al-Kharafi & Bros submitted the lowest bid of $697m, followed by local Sayed Hamid Behbehani & Sons ($821m). Local Alghanim International submitted the third-lowest bid of $893m.

A tender issued in 2012 for the expansion of the Kuwait Cancer Control Centre has yet to be awarded, while a tender to expand the Ibn Sina hospital is expected to be issued soon.