Kuwait to decide metro procurement structure

13 June 2016

Hybrid PPP-EPC among potential options

Kuwait could opt for a hybrid procurement model for its planned metropolitan rapid transit (MRT) project, instead of utilising a pure public-private partnership (PPP) model.

“It is foreseeable that a decision will be reached in September, whether the metro project in particular will be procured as a PPP, an engineering procurement and construction (EPC), or a hybrid between the two models,” a source told MEED.

The Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) has recently completed the review of the feasibility studies for both the MRT and the national railway schemes, with the prequalification of investors and developers expected to begin in the second quarter of 2016.

The study was carried out by UK companies EY, Ashurst and Arup.

This timeline now seems to have been delayed, as sources in Kuwait has told MEED that the final procurement model for the metro project is yet to be discussed by Kuwait’s senior government decision makers.

Reached for comment, the KAPP said they do not have any updates relevant to the potential change in the procurement structure for the metro project.

A typical greenfield rail project would have three to four packages tendered separately depending on the client. These packages could include civil and track work together, systems and rolling stock. It is possible, an expert told MEED, to apply varying procurement models for each of the packages, based on the risks that the client is willing to take or share with the developers.

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