China's Sinohydro has been awarded the estimated QR 1,600 million ($440 million) contract for the initial marine, earthworks and site preparation contract on the multi-billion-dollar Lusail real estate development. The client is Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company (MEED 30:9:05).

The 30-month contract covers: the excavation and dredging of 24 million cubic metres (mcm) of land to create a new shoreline, three access channels, inter-tidal flats and an artificial lagoon; offshore dredging of about 2.5 mcm; filling and reclamation of coastal land and manmade islands with a total volume of about 16 mcm; construction of edge treatment structures; and design and build work on the relocation of existing roads and the shoreline configuration.

The client has selected a team of Hyder Consulting and Halcrow, both of the UK, and Denmark's COWI to prepare detailed infrastructure plans and supervise construction for the next five years. In total, the project will have about 15 infrastructure packages, with the first ones coming out to tender by the end of the year.

The awards follow the mid-February selection of a consortium of France's Degremont, Japan's Marubeni Corporation and Kuwait's Mushrif Trading & Contracting Company to carry out the Lusail sewage transfer and treatment system to the northwest of the development. Qatari Diar, which was established last December, will provide infrastructure and civic buildings with the cost of infrastructure works alone estimated at $2,000 million (MEED 17:2:06).

Covering an area of 35 square kilometres, Lusail will be developed in phases over 10-15 years and eventually accommodate up to 200,000 residents. Ten independent districts, each with their own themes and dedicated infrastructure, are planned, ranging from residential and commercial to entertainment and leisure. The US' Bechtel prepared the masterplan for Lusail (Real Estate, MEED Special Report, 27:1:06).

Plans are also moving ahead for the construction of a new city within Lusail catering to the energy sector. Energy City will be divided into three phases, with phase 1 calling for the construction of a business district. The area will comprise centres ranging from oil and gas, service industries, infrastructure, downstream, shipping and trading. Total project costs are estimated at $2,600 million.

The local MZ & Partners is the lead consultant on Energy City and is working on the masterplan and architectural designs. Associated Consultants Engineers (ACE) International is the infrastructure works consultant, while the US' Parsons International is carrying out a traffic impact study. Gulf Energy, a global consortium of energy consultants and investors, is developing the project. Among its stakeholders are Bahrain's Gulf Finance House, Abu Dhabi Investment House and Kuwait Investment Company. The three companies announced in November a $276.5 million private placement to fund Energy City. US-based PFC Energy is acting as lead strategic adviser (MEED 25:11:05).