Eleven companies and joint ventures have prequalified to bid for the first phase of Bahrain’s long-planned metro system.
The scheme, which is expected to have a total length of 109km and a cost of $2bn, is to be implemented in four stages. The first will involve building two lines with a total length of 29km connecting 20 stations with autonomous trains.
According to TradeArabia News Service, the companies in the running for it are:
- Alstom from France
- Aradous Energy and Taqi Mohammed Albaharana Trading from Bahrain
- China Harbour Engineering, China Railway Group and train maker CRRC
- Hyundai Engineering from Korea
- Larsen and Toubro from India
- Orascom from Egypt
- Plenary Asia from Singapore
- Virtue Global Holding from the UK
The Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunication (MTT) has said it will procure the deal as a public–private partnership. The winner will finance, design, build and then operate the lines for 35 years.
The metro will be a light rail system and is expected to carry 43,000 passengers an hour.
It was first proposed by the MTT in 2008 with work due to begin the following year. It was delayed by the financial crash, and only picked up again after Bilbao-based consultant IDOM submitted a feasibility study in 2018.
