Oman Power & Water Procurement Company (OPWP) opened seven commercial offers for the planned Barka and Sohar independent power projects (IPPs) on 27 January.

The client opened the sealed envelopes containing the proposals in the presence of the seven bidders. However, in line with its standard procedures, OPWP did not announce the bidders’ prices.

The client had invited seven of the eight original bidders for the schemes to attend the bid opening meeting only a day earlier.

According to project sources, OPWP’s advisers recommended that it shortlist three companies for each project, but the company has chosen to eliminate only the US’ Balkan Energy from the list.

The remaining bidders for the two plants include Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power International with Japan’s Mitsubishi Corporation and South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering & Construction; Japan’s Marubeni Corporation with Chubu Electric, also of Japan, and Qatar Electricity & Water Company; and the UK’s International Power with UAE-based Mubadala Development Company, the local National Trading Company and French contractor Alstom.

Saudi Oger and Korea Electric Power Corporation have also been shortlisted in a team with South Korean contractor Daewoo Engineering & Construction; as has Belgium’s Suez Energy International with Saudi Arabia’s Al-Jomaih Group, Germany’s Siemens and South Korea’s GS Engineering & Construction; and India’s Lanco Infratech with Korea Plant Service & Engineering.

Iran’s Mapna Group has been shortlisted to bid for just the Sohar plant.

The developers submitted their technical and commercial proposals in early December.

OPWP had not asked them to take part in a separate prequalification process, choosing instead to include its qualification criteria in the request for proposals.

Each of the IPPs will have 650-750MW of power capacity.