2013 is a pivotal year for Qatar’s transportation programs. The country is pushing ahead with its massive transport infrastructure programs this year, with $17 billion worth of projects up for grabs, a report said.
Qatar’s Public Works Authority (Ashgal) has lined up 30 highway projects for award in 2013. As of February, a total of $1.88 billion has already been awarded, including the $640 million Package 13 on the Doha Expressway.
In addition to the Expressway Program, the massive transport schemes that have yet to be awarded include the Local Roads & Drainage Program, the Integrated Rail Program, Lusail City Development as well as various bridges, tunnels air & maritime port expansion programs.
With the Fifa 2022 World Cup less than a decade away, there is a greater urgency for Qatar to award transport projects that will be critical to the country’s successful staging of the world’s biggest sporting spectacle, he said.
In particular, there has been a massive interest in Qatar’s high speed and freight rail projects, Phase One of which involves the 195 km freight line linking Port Mesaieed to Ras Laffan. The next phase will focus on the construction of the 150 km high-speed connection to Bahrain, and the final phase will involve the construction of a 165 km network linking Dukhan to Al-Shamal and Doha City.
Another project that will pick up in activity is the Doha Metro, for which the Gold & Green Lines are expected to be awarded at the end of second quarter this year, while the rolling stock and systems contracts will be handed out early next year and the O&M packages in 2015.
ifpinfo
27 March
