Kuwait has prequalified eight international consultancy and architectural firms to carry out feasibility and design study for a multi-million dollar causeway project, the Middle East Economic Digest, MEED, said Monday.
The prequalifiers were named as Denmark's COWI, US firm De Leuw Cather International, EEG-Simescol of France, Britain's Halcrow, Jean Muller of France, Pacific Consultants of Japan, the US' Parsons Brinckerhoff International with Mouchel and Partners of Britain, and Ramboll Hanneman and Hojlund of Denmark.
The causeway is part of a plan to develop a new city at Subiyah and link it with Kuwait City, thus reducing the distance of 130 km (80 miles) to 22 km (14 miles), MEED said.
The consultancy and design project is expected to cost around $10 million, with the prequalified firms likely to submit their proposals in April, it said.
Subiyah, close to the border with Iraq, will be built in three phases spanning 20 years and it is estimated that it could have a final population of 250,000 people.
The new town is expected to cost more than $5.8 billion, of which infrastructure will cost $3.9 billion and public utilities $1.1 billion. Kuwait is also planning to build a second new town in Khiran near the border with Saudi Arabia. — (AFP, Dubai)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
