Oman’s Transport and Communications Ministry has received 9 bids for a contract covering the improvement of the Khasab to Tibat coastal road.

Turkey’s Sezai Turkes-Feyzi Akkaya submitted the low bid of RO16m ($42m). The company also submitted alternative bids of RO31m and RO42m. The deadline for submission of bids was 14 January 2013.

Khasab is the capital city of Musandam, an enclave of Oman separated from the rest of the sultanate by the UAE. The road from Khasab runs along the peninsula to the town of Tibat, towards the border with Ras al-Khaimah.

Before the coastal road was built, access to the area was almost impossible by land. The peninsula is now becoming an attractive tourist destination, particularly for those living in the UAE.

Oman has recently issued a flurry of large road contracts as it looks to bolster its economy by developing more modern and integrated transport infrastructure. The government has earmarked $8bn for the construction of 12,704km of road projects as land transport continues to be the main means of getting around the sultanate.

Late last month, the ministry issued a tender for a contract worth an estimated $160m to build a 45km road between Ubaylah and Fayyad. Bids for the contract were initially floated in 2011. The submission date for the new tender is 18 November.

The biggest road scheme being built is the 260km Batinah Expressway, which will be Oman’s first dual four-lane road once completed. The $2.6bn project will connect Sohar, Muscat and the UAE, and is expected to reduce the travel time between Muscat and the UAE border by at least an hour.