Tenders will be invited in the next two months for the Dubai mass transit project. The project will comprise of a 72 km track, from the American University in Jebel Ali to the edge of the emirate at Salahuddin Road, and from the Dubai Festival City to the vicinity of central Dubai. The project involves construction of two separate lines, the Green Line and the Red Line. The entire project is expected to cost around Dh8 billion. About 30% would be underground and 70% on elevated tracks. The underground section will run in the city centre. There would be a total of 55 stations across Dubai, each one to 3 km distant. The trains would be automated and driverless. The project will be complete and operational by 2010. Read E-News Weekly 50/2003. 06/04.French consultancy Systra will carry out the initial plans for the Dubai driverless metro system. Tenders for construction of the proposed USD3.92 billion project will be invited in May or June. Construction to start by October 2005. The system will comprise two lines, a 50 km Red Line with 35 stations (first phase) and a 19.2 km Green Line serving 22 stations (second phase). The Red Line is estimated at USD2.33 billion. Completion expected by 2009 for first phase and 2012 for second phase. The system will include 18 km of tunnels. Read E-News Weekly 50/2003. Visit www.systra.com 13/04.The Dubai municipality invites companies to prequalify, deadline 1st June, 2004 for the final design and construction of the Dubai light rail project, which consists of two lines of around 70 km, out of which 30% is underground. The remaining portions are elevated. The municipality hopes to award a single turnkey contract. Tender documents should be released in early August. Visit http://vgn.dm.gov.ae/DMEGOV/dm-mp-train-project or contact wmmustafa@dm.gov.ae for technical enquiries and ssqaiwani@dm.gov.ae for contractual enquiries. Subscribe to E-News Weekly 50/2003. 20/04.The Dubai municipality in the United Arab Emirates has extended the final bid submission deadline for its AED12.5 billion light rail transit (LRT) project by one month, from 31st January to 28th February, 2005. After evaluation, the final contract is expected to be awarded in May 2005. The five consortia selected to bid for the project are: Bilfinger Berger, Taisei, Besix and Alstom; Vinci, Hochtief, CCIC of the UAE and Ansaldo; Obayashi, Yapi Merkesi (Turkey) and Mitsubishi; consortium Metro One, which includes Odebrecht, Arab-tec of the UAE, Guris (Turkey), Ghella of Italy, PARsons and Bombardier; and finally the Bin Laden Group of Saudi Arabia, Dywidag and Siemens. All the bidders are negotiating with leading local and international banks to finance the bids. The Dubai municipality will provide only 10% of the project value to the winning consortium. The first round of bids, which involved rail systems and signalling, were submitted on 1st November, 2004.Phase I of the 72 km project includes the entire Green Line from Dubai Airport Free Zone to Dubai Healthcare City, covering the major locations in downtown Dubai, as well as part of the Red Line from Rashidiya to Dubai Marina. Phase I covers 43 km of which about 3.5 km will be underground. Phase II runs from the American University (near Dubai Marina) to Jebel Ali port, covering 29 km. 53/04-01/05.A Dh6.285 billion bid from the Mitsubishi-led Dubai Rapid Link consortium, including Obayashi and Yapi Merkesi, is the lowest offer made for the first phase of the Dubai light rail project. The Metro One consortium led by Bombardier, involving also Odebrecht, Arab-tec of the UAE, Guris, Ghella and Parsons, submitted the highest bid, at Dh10 billion. The difference between the lowest and highest bids was approximately over Dh4billion. The Dubai Star consortium led by Bilfinger Berger and comprising Taisei, Besix, Orascom and local group Al Habtoor, quoted Dh8.854 billion. Finally, the Salsabeel consortium, which includes the Saudi Bin Laden Group as group leader, Siemens, Dywidag and the Chinese Citic Group, quoted Dh8.922 billion. The winner of the first phase of the DLR project will be announced in a few weeks. Works could begin as early as May 2005. 10/05.The Dubai municipality awarded a USD3.3 billion contract to the Dubai Rapid Link (DURL) consortium led by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, including Obayashi, Kajima and Yapi Merkezi of Turkey, to build a fully automated driverless metro network that will consist of two lines and 44 trains covering the main locations across Dubai and will feature elevated and underground sections. DURL also clinched a USD512 million contract to carry out maintenance of the project for 15 years. The first phase of the project comprises a 52.1 km east-west Red Line and 35 stations between Salahuddin Road to the American University of Dubai through Burjuman and Sheikh Zayed Road, and will progressively be extended to Jebel Ali Port in the south and the intersection of Al Nahda and Damascus roads through Al Qiyadah intersection in the north. The 17.6 km Green Line and 20 stations runs from Al Ittihad Square to Rashidiya bus station through Deira City Centre and the Airport Terminals 1 and 3, and will progressively be extended to serve the Deira and Bur Dubai central areas and souks up to Burjuman and Wafi shopping centres. There are two stations at Al Ittihad Square and Burjuman where the lines will intersect. The two lines will run underground in the city centre from the intersection of Sheikh Rashid and Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed roads to just before the intersection of Salahuddin and Abu Bakr Al Siddique roads for the Red Line and from Garhoud to Oud Metha Road for the Green Line. In total, the Metro System will include 55 stations, 18 km of tunnels, 51 km of viaduct Construction is scheduled to start in July. The red line will take 49 months to complete, while the green line will take 35 months. Work on the green line will begin 20 months after the red line's construction starts. The red line is expected to be inaugurated in September 2009. Visit http://vgn.dm.gov.ae/DMEGOV/dm-mp-metro 23/05.Geoconsult's Singapore office received a contract for overseeing tunnelling work on the Dubai metro after being appointed by the Dubai Rapid Link Consortium, whose members include Japanese companies Obayashi and Kajima, as well as the Turkish Yapi Merkezi and Capita Symonds from the UK. Atkins has also been drafted in as an advisor. Visit www.geoconsult.at and www.atkins.comThe first phase of the Metro project will be the 52.1 km Red Line running between Rashidiya and the industrial zone of Jebel Ali. The second phase will run 17.6 km from the airport, through the city centre on both sides of the Creek. There will be over 11 km of TBM-bored tunnels on both lines, with most of the excavation work taking place underneath the Creek, and between Union Square and Rashidiya. Atkins has also been drafted in as an advisor. 12/06.The Japanese-Turkish Metro JV (JTMJV) has appointed Atkins as design programme manager and detailed designer for its design-and-build contract covering phase 1 of the Dubai transit system. JTMJV comprises Obayashi, Kajima and Yapi Merkezi and, together with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), forms the Dubai Rapid Link consortium (DuRL). The JV engaged Atkins as lead consultant for all works comprising the phase one Red Line, including 26 stations (four underground), 53 km of viaducts and tunnelling and all associated infrastructure and building works. The Red Line forms the first phase of the awaited Dh15.5 billion Dubai metro project and is expected to be ready by September 2009. Visit www.atkinsglobal.com 28/06.