Kuwait’s Partnerships Technical Bureau (PTB) has invited companies to submit proposals for the transaction advisory contract for the first phase on its estimated $7bn Kuwait Metro project.

Interested companies will have until 2 August to collect documents. The PTB has stipulated that technical and financial proposals for the transaction advisory contract should be submitted between 26 August and 20 September. Companies seeking to submit proposals must have experience in rapid transit projects, district cooling schemes, contract management and public-private partnership (PPP) projects.

The PTB is currently evaluating expressions of interest (EOI) for the contract to supply rolling stock and systems for the metro, the first of five PPP contracts to be tendered for the first phase of the metro. The government department received EOIs from more than 60 companies in June.

When complete, the Kuwait metro network will be 160 kilometres long and will have 69 stations. Phase one covers the construction of about 50km with 28 stations. About 30 per cent of this phase will be underground.

The UK’s Ernst & Young, Ashurst and Atkins is advising the PTB on the development of the project.