Kuwait extends bids for port at Bubiyan Island

17 November 2009

Ministry requests prices from firms by 22 December

Kuwait’s Public Works Ministry has delayed the bid deadline for the marine works contract at its port at Bubiyan Island.

The new closing date is 22 December, a month later than its previous deadline.

Contractors say the ministry extended the deadline after it changed the tender documents and the bill of quantities, the document that sets out how much material will be used to build the project.

The ministry has already extended the bid deadline from the original closing date of 28 July.

According to contractors, the ministry may add more firms to the prequalification list. If this happens, the ministry may extend the deadline again.

The current prequalification list includes: the local United Gulf Construction Company with South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering & Construction Company; a consortium of the local Combined Group Contracting Company with Turkey’s Tadamon Company and STFA Marine, and Belgium’s Jan de Nul; Geneva-registered Archirodon Construction (Overseas) with the local Mushrif Trading & Contracting Company; and Kuwait Arab Contractors with Egypt’s Arab Contractors.

The design-and-build contract covers the construction of a container terminal on the island, four berths and a 1.3-kilometre-long quay wall, as well as port buildings and utilities, digging and soil improvement work, and site levelling (MEED 23:10:09).

The ministry is preparing to issue a tender for dredging work at the port.

The two tenders show that work on the project is about to accelerate after three years of slow progress.

The ministry originally planned to open the port in 2010.

A MEED Subscription...

Subscribe or upgrade your current MEED.com package to support your strategic planning with the MENA region’s best source of business information. Proceed to our online shop below to find out more about the features in each package.