Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry has invited contractors to submit bids for the construction package on the estimated SR15bn ($4bn) fourth phase of its security compounds programme.

Contractors have until 19 February 2012 to submit bids for the project, also known as CAP 4. The work involves the construction of security headquarter buildings for the Interior Ministry at 13 locations in the kingdom.

The project is the fourth contract to be tendered by the ministry to build a network of security compounds throughout Saudi Arabia. The contract will cover the construction, operation and maintenance of 28 different types of facilities at more than 50 locations. In total, the ministry is expected to spend more than $13bn across the four phases of the scheme.

Third phase

In July, the Interior Ministry received 11 bids for the third phase of the project. The frontrunners to win the deal are the local Seder Construction Company and the local Saudi Binladin Group, according to sources in Riyadh.

Seder submitted the low bid for the project, estimated to be about SR10bn. The bid was considerably lower than the previously estimated SR20bn value of the scheme. Other companies that had submitted bids for the third package include the local Saudi Oger, local El-Seif Engineering Contracting and the local Nesma & Partners Contracting Company.

The first phase of the programme was awarded to Saudi Binladin, while Saudi Oger won the contract to build the second phase.

The security compounds will be used to house, educate and train members of Saudi Arabia’s public security, civil defence service, fire service, police force, passports division and special security and investigative forces.

The facilities have been designed to include schools, mosques, theatres, civilian dormitories, military barracks, administration buildings, training facilities and buildings for recreation and entertainment.

The majority of the security premises will be built in and around Riyadh, but facilities will also be built in the provinces of Qassim, Hail, Tabuk, Jeddah, Medinah, Taif, Al-Jouf and on Saudi Arabia’s northern borders.

Top client

Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry is emerging as an increasingly important client in the kingdom’s construction sector.

In the first three quarters of 2011, the ministry awarded more than $2bn of projects and received bids for a further $10bn-plus worth of construction and infrastructure schemes.

According to estimates from sources in the kingdom, the ministry has about 4,000 schemes planned, with about $10bn-worth of projects currently under construction. In addition to the security compound network, the ministry is also pressing ahead with large medical schemes in Riyadh and Jeddah.

Saudi Binladin Group and the local ABV Rock Group are frontrunners to build the Security Forces Medical Cities, worth a total estimated value of SR25bn. The ministry received bids from 10 contractors on 7 August.

The scope of the work will include construction and fit-out of the medical cities, which will each cover a total area of 1.3 million square metres.

The two medical cities will have the same design and will both include three hospitals and all related medical and residential facilities. The medical facilities will have a total built-up area of about 400,000 sq m.

Each complex will also contain academic and clinical centres and a research centre. The consultant is the local office of Lebanon’s Dar al-Handasah (MEED 18:5:11).

In the kingdom’s ninth five-year development plan, the government announced plans to spend $385bn on infrastructure.