Local steel mill Sonasid has invited bids for construction of the metallic structure for a new 300,000-tonne-a-year (t/y) steel plant.

Local and international companies are expected to bid for the 4,000-5,000-tonne metallic structure. The six-month contract is worth about $3 million, a company official says.

The contract to build the plant itself has been awarded to Danieli & Company of Italy for about $40 million. Works are expected to begin in the next two months.

Feasibility studies for the project were carried out by the UK's WS Atkins International.

The plant, to be situated in Jorf Lasfar on the Atlantic ocean, will be Sonasid's third. The two existing plants, also of 300,000-t/y capacity each, are located in the northern town of Nador and in Casablanca.