Kuwait’s Electricity and Water Ministry has selected the local Bader al-Mulla & Bros Company to install about 1MW of rooftop photovoltaic solar power capacity.

The solar panels are to be installed on the rooftops of the Electricity Ministry and the adjacent Public Works Ministry buildings in Kuwait City. The combined area of both rooftops is 8,400 square metres.

Al-Mulla submitted a bid of KD1.28m ($4.6m) to build the project. The decision to make a formal award is now with Kuwait’s tender board.

Sources close to the project say that the Central Tender Board may reject the recommendation as lower bids were submitted for the contract by two companies.

The following bids were submitted on 4 September 2011:

• Al-Amer Electrical Company – KD1.20m
• Al-Roumi Trading & Contracting Company – KD2.21m
• International Contracting Company – KD1.59m
• Al-Khonaini General Trading & Contracting Company – KD2.05m
• Equipment Company – KD1.29m
• Easa Husain al-Yousifi & Sons Company – KD1.81m
• Combined Group Contracting Company – KD1.89m
• ABJ Engineering and Contracting Company – KD1.21m
• Kharafi National – KD1.59m
• Salem Mohammed al-Nisf Electrical Group – KD1.74m
• Arabian Solar Energy and Technology Company – KD1.90m
• Abdullah al-Hamad Al Sagar and Brothers – KD2.43m
• Bader Al Mulla & Bros Company – KD1.28m
• Al Mukhtar Contracting & Trading Company – KD2.55m
• Sayed Hamid Behbehani & Sons – KD56,000
• Al Bashar Trading & Electrical Contracting Company – KD1.9m
• Al-Kulaib International Trading Company – KD1.23m
• Consolidated Contractors Company – KD1.55m
• Real Estate Development Company – KD2.19m
• Ali Mohammed Thunayan Al Ghanim & Sons General Trading – KD2.23m
• Nasiba Buildings General Contracting Company – KD4.32m
• Gulf Engineering Company – KD1.20m
• Al-Omara General Trading & Contracting Company – KD1.98m

The tender was open only to local construction entities, but each company was entitled to select their own technology provider, as long as that firm has been in operation for at least 15 years.