Metro Authority is seeking bids for completion and commissioning of the initial phases of Line 1, the 9 km-long underground city centre section with ten stations and its link to the surface railway of SNTF at Hamma. December 1999.   Tenders expected 2002 for 10 km-long underground sector of $600 million, 12.5 km line 1 to run NW-SE. 5.2 km in NW will be single-tube, 64 sq m finished section, drill/blast in gneiss and schist; 4 km in SE will be excavator or roadheader in marl. All supported by steel arches and shotcrete. Designers Sofretu/RATP, construction managers SGTE, Setec, Simecso, and SMM. Visit www.setec.fr 23/01.   Extra $1 billion financing sought to complete the construction of Emir Abdelkader-El Hamma section of the first metro line, plagued by endless delay due to lack of financing, insufficient experience of local companies Geni Sider and Cosider, and land expropriation problems. Work, commenced in 1990, is only 60% complete. Study underway to update the project both economically and financially to serve as a base to develop the project under concession. To date, 4 km of tunnel and four stations remain to be built to reach Haí¯ El-Badr (Gué de Constantine). Visit www.cosider-groupe.com 18/02.   The eight bidders for the building of a 4.1 km tunnel section for the Algiers metro between El Hamma and Haí¯ El Badr are Nurol (Turkey); STFA (Turkey); Polat (Turkey); Lesi (Italy); Toto Costruzioni (Italy); Génie-Sider / Pizzarotti (Algeria/Italy); ETRHB / Razel / Bilfinger Berger (Algeria/France/Germany); and Cosider / Infrafer / Dywidag (Algeria/Germany). 15/03.   The three shorlisted bidders for construction of section El Hamma-Haí¯ El Badr, 4.1 km in tunnel and four stations, are Dywidag / Cosider TP / Infrafer (lowest bidder with 14.6 billion dinars); Razel / Bilfinger Berger / ETRHB (16 billion dinars); and Pizzarotti / Gesi TP (17 billion dinars). 19/03.  The Cosider / Infrafer / Dywidag JV has secured a contract worth 14.6 billion dinars to build El Hamma-Haí¯ El Badr section (4.1 km) on Line 1 but the Génie Sider / Pizzarotti JV is objecting to the award. Visit www.cosider-groupe.com, www.infrafer.com/text.htm and www.walter-bau.de 33/03.A consortium of Siemens Transportation Systems (lead company), VINCI Construction Grands Projets and Spain's CAF (rolling stock) has just signed a EUR380 million contract to equip the first metro line in Algiers. VINCI's share of the contract amounts to EUR121 million and covers development of ten stations (nine underground and one above ground), construction of a 16,000 sq metre technical building and technical works packages relating to smoke extraction, ventilation and escalators. The project is scheduled to take 35 months to complete. Civil engineering works of the 9 km line, which will link Tafourah to Haí¯ El Badr, will be completed in June 2006. Read E-News Weekly 21/2005. Visit www.vinci.com 05/06.Entreprise du Metro d'Alger (EMA), the Algiers metro company, has awarded the contract to provide assistance with the follow-up of design studies, installation and fitting-out of fixed equipment for all systems on Line 1 (phase 1) of the Algiers metro, including stations, rolling stock and workshops to a consortium of Systra and RATP Developpement.Phase 1 runs from Tafourah Grande Poste station to Hai El Badr, through 11 km of tunnel. The line has 10 stations. Main construction of both the tunnel and stations is nearing completion. It also includes the high voltage substation, the control centre and the partly completed Bachdjarah maintenance complex. The consortium is therefore responsible for follow-up, inspection and coordination of the construction of the whole transport system. Visit www.systra.com and www.ratp-developpement.fr 17/06.Groupe Algéro-Allemand du Métro d'Alger (GAAMA), a joint venture between Dywidag International of Germany (51%) and Algerian contractors Cosider (35%) and Infrafer (14%), submitted the lowest bid (EUR215 million) for the second phase of the Algiers metro, from Haí¯ El Badr to El Harrach. The other bidders are Razel of France (EUR224 million), a Portuguese joint venture (EUR233 million) and French giant VINCI (EUR244 million). The Haí¯ El Badr-El Harrach section includes a 2.8 km tunnel with four stations (Bachdjarah 1, Bachdjarah 2, El Harrach Gare and El Harrach Centre) and a 252 m viaduct. Read E-News Weekly 45/2006 & 25/2005. Visit www.dywidag-international.com, www.cosider-groupe.dz and www.infrafer.com 32/07.The international consortium Gaama (standing for Groupement algéro-allemand de métro d'Alger) formed by Dywidag of Germany and Algeria's Cosider TP, with Italian subcontractor Trevi, has won the international bid for the 2.8 km extension of Line 1 of the subway in Algiers. The contract for the civil engineering works relates to lot 1 and totals DZD23.2 billion (around EUR215 million, of which EUR46 million for Trevi). The project includes four stations (Bachdjarah 1, Bachdjarah 2, El Harrach-Centre and El Harrach-Gare) and a multimodal station to provide rail, metro, bus and taxi interactivity. Work is expected to commence in early 2008 and last 32 months until July 2010 after the contract signing scheduled within the next few months. The first 9.1 km section of Line 1 should be operative in September 2008. Read E-News Weekly 45/2006. Visit www.dywidag-international.com, www.cosider-groupe.dz and www.trevispa.com or www.trevifin.com 50-51/07.Dywidag International of Munich, as leader of an international consortium with Cosider of Algeria and Trevi of Italy, was awarded the contract for the civil works of the second extension of Line 1 in Algiers, from Hai El Badr to El Harrach in the eastern part of Algiers. The new contract covers the construction of a 2,712 m-long tunnel, four stations (Bachdjarah 1, Bachdjarah 2, El Harrach Gare, El Harrach Centre), a bridge over the motorway, a river crossing as well as several ventilation buildings. In a planned period of 32 months, construction works will be carried out in an area of four kilometres and will amount to approximately EUR252 million including taxes. The tunnel will be built using NATM while the four stations will be built in open cut. Visit www.dywidag.com, www.cosider-groupe.dz and www.trevispa.comDywidag International already carried out the civil works for the first extension of Line 1 from Hamma to Hai El Badr for approx. EUR188 million. These works started in April 2003 by a German-Algerian joint venture of Dywidag International (leader) and Cosider and Infrafer of Algiers, covering a 4.1 km-long tunnel, four stations and several ventilation buildings. For this section the NATM and open cut methods were applied too. The works ended in May 2007. Click dz/12. 22/08.