Ten local and international companies have submitted bids for a contract to provide project management consultancy services for the $2.6bn Batinah Expressway project. Oman’s Transport & Communications Ministry floated the tender in September, and bids were opened on 2 December.

The following companies submitted bids for the tender:

• Associated Consulting Engineers (Lebanon)
• Consolidated Consultants Engineering (Jordan)
• Dar al-Handasah (Lebanon)
• Driver Global Construction Consultancy (UK)
• Emaar Engineering Consultancy (Bahrain)
• Faithful & Gould (UK)
• KEO International Consultants (local office)
• Khatib & Alami (Lebanon)
• Malcolm Pirnie (USA)
• Milcris (Sri Lanka)

The Batinah Expressway project is Oman’s biggest road scheme and will create the first dual four-lane motorway in the sultanate. The project has been divided into six packages, with only package 2 not under contract. In 2012, the tender for package 2 was issued to a consortium of Malaysian construction firm WCT Engineering and Oman Roads Engineering Company, but the contract was cancelled earlier this year and retendered in July.

In September, Oman’s Transport & Communications Ministry reissued a tender for package 2, with bids due on 18 November. Oman’s tender board has opened technical bids for the retendered contract. Commercial bids will be opened later.

In 2012, the local Galfar Engineering & Contracting Company won a $361m deal for package one of the Batinah Expressway project. Earlier this year, package three of the scheme was awarded to India’s Simplex Infrastructures for $318m, while India’s Larsen & Toubro was awarded a $353m contract for package four. In August, Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) won a $322m deal for package six, while a joint venture led by the local Federici Stirling Batco won a $345m deal for package five.