The Central Tenders Committee (CTC) has invited contractors to prequalify for the contract to build the estimated $747m new terminal building at Kuwait International airport.

The CTC has invited companies to prequalify after the Public Works Ministry invited 26 firms to prequalify. It received a positive response from 14 consortiums led by the following international contracting companies:

• Hochtief (Germany)
• China State (China)
• Larsen & Toubro (India)
• Enka (Turkey)
• TAV (Turkey)
• Al-Habtoor Leighton Group (UAE/Australia)
• Samsung C&T (Korea)
• Italian-Thai (Thailand)
• Sinohydro Corporation (China)
• Murray & Roberts (South Africa)
• Limak (Turkey)
• Obayashi (Japan)
• Shanghai Construction Group (China)
• Daewoo Engineering & Construction (Korea)

“We have already responded to the ministry and we will now have to respond to the CTC,” says one of the firms that replied to the original prequalification invitation.

The new terminal will have an initial capacity of 13 million passengers a year, with the flexibility to increase this to 25 million passengers in the next phase. Its ultimate capacity will be 50 million passengers a year.

The airport’s current passenger capacity is 6 million. The terminal is scheduled to open in November 2016.

In February, the joint venture of local First Kuwaiti Trading Company and Saudi Arabia’s Almabani General Contractors was selected for the $312m contract to build the runway at the airport. It involves building a new, third runway at the airport, as well as the reconstruction and extension of the existing eastern runway to make it 4 kilometres long. The new runway will be 4.5km long. This package also includes the construction of primary and secondary access roads and taxiways.

The design is being led by the Foster & Partners who won the contract in November 2009. The UK-based architect is working with local firm Gulf Consult.