The list of bidders for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts for the two main packages at the $6.4bn Al-Karaana Petrochemicals Complex in Qatar is now down to three, after three consortiums pulled out of the bidding process.

MEED reported in February that the tenders had been spilt into two packages for the project, an 80:20 joint venture between of Qatar Petroleum (QP) and the UK/Dutch Shell Group which is being built at Ras Laffan in northern Qatar. They are:

Package 1: Mixed-feed steam cracker and offsites and utilities

Package 2: linear alpha olefins (LAO) unit, monoethylene glycol (MEG) unit, oxo-alcohols unit

Package 1 is open to three technology providers and they have been invited to team up with engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors to bid. The consortiums left in the bidding process are:

• CB&I Lummus/Daelim Industrial/Toyo Engineering/Hyundai Engineering & Construction (US/South Korea/Japan/South Korea)
• Linde/Samsung Engineering (Germany/South Korea)
• Technip/ JGC Corporation/SK Engineering & Construction (France/Japan/South Korea)

The mixed-feed steam cracker unit will be supplied with ethane and propane feedstock. The cracker will have a capacity of 1.1 million tonnes a year (t/y) of ethylene and 170,000 t/y of propylene.

The cracker will be tendered to the technology providers on the basis that the winner will carry out the front-end engineering and design (feed), then execute the EPC in tandem with an EPC contractor.

Package 2 will concentrate on the EPC of the three process plants at the complex. The remaining bidders are:

• Chiyoda Corporation/Foster Wheeler/CTCI (Japan/US/Taiwan)
• GS E&C/Saipem (South Korea/Italy)
• Tecnicas Reunidas (Spain)

The MEG unit will have a capacity of 1.5 million t/y and will use Shell Group technology. The work involves the construction of two trains, each with a capacity of 750,000 t/y.

The LAO and oxo-alcohols units will have capacities of 300,000 t/y and 250,000 t/y respectively.

The US’ Fluor is carrying out the feed contract for the three packages using Shell Group technology, which will include the offsites and utilities works.

The submission date for the final commercial bids for both packages has now been extended to 2 October, but that may be extended. Awards are now expected towards the end of 2014 or early 2015. Commissioning of Al-Karaana is expected in 2018.