The big picture

01 UNITED KINGDOM Snorkel begins full production on lithiumpowered roughterrain scissor lifts

Access equipment major Snorkel has announced the commencement of full production on five lithiumion battery powered compact rough terrain scissor lift models.

These scissor lifts are designed to offer “a true zero emission rough terrain solution, without compromising on the reliability and four-wheel drive capabilities” of the diesel equivalents. The five new ‘RTE’ electric rough terrain scissor lifts are now in production in Snorkel’s assembly facilities in the UK and New Zealand.

04 IVORY COAST BESIX awarded contract for tallest tower in Africa

BESIX has been awarded a major contract to provide site management, as well as the civil engineering works for a skyscraper in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, which will be the tallest tower in Africa.

Standing at 935 feet, the F Tower is a project being developed by PFO Africa, with the support of the Ministry of Construction, Housing, and Urban Planning.

It is the second project associating PFO Africa and BESIX and carried out for the Ivorian government, following the La Mé drinking water plant, which is currently under construction.

02 UNITED KINGDOM Saudi-owned Cleveland Bridge falls into administration due to COVID-19

Engineering and steel fabrication firm Cleveland Bridge has fallen into administration as a result of delays on several of its global infrastructure projects, bought on by the outbreak of COVID-19. The firm is owned by Saudi-based Al Rushaid Group.

Joint administrators Martyn Pullin, David Willis, and Iain Townsend of specialist business advisory firm FRP have been appointed to help save the firm. The firm has 221 staff at its Darlington HQ and a satellite office in Newport.

05 RWANDA ADFD signs $15m loan for Rwandan road project

The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has signed a loan agreement with the government of Rwanda to provide a $15 million concessionary loan to finance the construction and development of the Rubengera-Muhanga road project, which stretches across a distance of 61 kilometres.

The project aims to renovate and expand the road linking the two cities to enhance traffic flow between them, as well as facilitating access to social, health and educational services, driving economic sectors, such as agriculture, tourism, and transportation, and trade.

03 GERMANY Siemens to build major green hydrogen plant in Germany

Siemens has marked the start of construction of one of the largest green hydrogen plants in Germany with the official ground-breaking ceremony for the project in Wunsiedel, Germany, it has announced.

In a statement, the energy solutions provider said the plant will have a capacity of 8.75MW, and that it will produce up to 1,350 tons of hydrogen per year using only renewable energy (solar or wind power). It added that the use of the generated hydrogen in transportation and industry will allow for CO2 savings of up to 13,500 tons annually.

06 KENYA Randon Implementos to set up Kenyan assembly plant

Brazilian trailer OEM Randon Implementos is set to build a CKD (Completely Knocked Down) assembly unit in Kenya alongside JAP Africa, a subsidiary of Portuguese conglomerate JAP.

A strategic agreement between the two commits both entities to the local assembly of semi-trailers. The platform and tipper sets are shipped from Brazil to be assembled and commercialised by the local partner. The expectation is for continuous growth in terms of market share in the next few years, reaching neighbouring countries such as Tanzania and Uganda.

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07 EGYPT Construction permits applied for $30bn Egyptian nuclear power plant

Construction permits have been applied for the first and second units of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant, the planned $30bn, 4.8GW El-Dabaa nuclear power facility, according to Russia’s Rosatom, which was awarded the contract to the plant in 2015.

Rosatom said the North African country’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NPPA) has applied for the construction permits and has submitted the permit application and all of the required documents to the Egyptian Nuclear and Radiological Regulation Authority.

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08 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Al Masood Group appoints Hani Tannir as new head of power, construction and marine divisions

UAE-based conglomerate Al Masaood Group has announced the appointment of Hani Tannir as its new head of Commercial for its logistics, power, construction and marine divisions. In his new role at the Abu Dhabi-headquartered group, Tannir will lead key business development activities and generate new revenue streams for the group’s power, construction, marine, and logistics operations. He originally worked for the company from 1994-2013, before rejoining in 2020.

09 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Aldar launches second phase of Al Gurm

Aldar Properties has announced the launch of the second phase of its Al Gurm development, a luxury secluded waterfront community on the SouthWest side of Abu Dhabi’s main island.

The beach facing land plots at Al Gurm, which sit amongst the natural mangroves and open water, are exclusively available to purchase by UAE nationals.

A total of 71 new plots are available at Al Gurm, which is comprised of a series of archipelago-style islands over a total of 105,000 sqm. Each plot will have access to exclusive beaches and sea views. Plots range in size from 900 to 4,400 sqm.

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10 SAUDI ARABIA Construction of KSA F1 circuit on track

Construction work is in full swing on Formula 1’s fastest-ever street circuit, which is being prepared at Jeddah Corniche track, for the inaugural Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, which is scheduled for December 5, 2021.

The 27-corner, 6.1km Jeddah Corniche Circuit will be the second-longest on the calendar and will feature an average speed of 250km/h, as per simulations. It will be 6.175km in length, the second-longest circuit on the current F1 calendar and the longest street circuit in the sport. The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix will make its calendar debut from December 3 – 5, 2021.

11 BAHRAIN Bahrain invites tender bids for road infrastructure works

Bahrain’s Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning has invited bids for a tender to carry out the first phase of infrastructure works at blocks 941 and 943 at Buhair, within the Southern Governorate, it has been announced.

According to a statement by the Ministry, the scope of work includes a sixkilometre-long drainage network, running from Buhair to Sanad. The ministry added that the road network will also be upgraded, with a main line being set up to take rainwater from Buhair to Tubli Bay.

12 QATAR Driver Trett appoints new country manager for Qatar and Kuwait

Driver Trett has announced a new country manager for Qatar and Kuwait. Mustafa Gun has been with the company in the Middle East for over five years and spent the last year overseeing the growth of the Kuwait business. His new role expands his focus into the Qatar market.

According to a statement, Gun has more than 15 years of industry experience working in the Middle East, Europe and Asia, and has undertaken various commercial, contractual and claims management roles.

13 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES RTA releases PPP tenders for construction of three integrated truck rest stops

Dubai’s RTA has released a tender for the construction of three integrated truck rest stops in the emirate of Dubai. The project offers an innovative model of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) aligned with the provisions of Dubai Law No (22) of 2015. The rest stops will be situated in vital spots. The first is on MBZ Road nearby Jebel Ali Industrial Area 3 in the direction of Abu Dhabi. The second is on Emirates Road, near the entry of Sharjah. The third is in Dubai Industrial City near Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road.

16 OMAN SFZ completes second works package of logistic warehouses

Salalah Free Zone (SFZ), an Asyad Group business hub, has announced the completion of construction works for the second package of logistic warehouses, covering a total area of 25,000sqm, it has been announced.

The facility will lend strong support to the logistics sector in the Sultanate, enhance the global supply lines with innovative solutions, and open up investment opportunities for national and foreign industries. The SFZ logistics project has a full set of services to power Asyad’s investment projects’ economic roles.

14 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Hill awarded PM contract for RAK Anantara Resort project

Hill International has announced that it has been awarded a contract by RAK Properties to provide project management services for the 5-star Anantara Resort Hotel at Mina Al Arab in the UAE emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.

The project is tailored to guests desiring overwater luxury in an eco-sanctuary setting and is scheduled for completion in late 2022, a statement said. Offering views of the ocean and adjacent tidal wetlands, the 71,000 SM, 174-key resort is located on the edge of the Eco Reserve, and takes full advantage of this setting, it continued.

17 ARMENIA Masdar wins tender for 200MW Armenian solar plant

Masdar has been selected by the government of Armenia as the winning bidder for the tender for a 200-megawatt (MW) major utility-scale solar project.

After a competitive international bidding process, Masdar submitted a final price of $0,0290/kWh. The plant will be located in the Talin and Dashtadem communities of Armenia, in an area where solar radiation is both high and land is unusable for agriculture. Around $174 million will be invested, with a new substation built. The plant will span over 500 hectares and will create numerous jobs.

15 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Khansaheb clocks more than four million workhours without LTI on University of Birmingham project

A significant safety milestone has been achieved at the under-construction University of Birmingham Dubai; contractor Khansaheb has announced. The contractor has clocked more than four million workhours without a lost-time incident (LTI). The achievement reflects successful implementation of the highest HSE procedures and puts the construction project on track for completion in Q3 with 100% of structural works already finished.

18 INDIA L&T Construction wins global energy infrastructure contracts

L&T Construction has won a number of orders for the development of energy infrastructure overseas and in India, with the construction subsidiary securing a major contract to design, supply, construct, install, test and commission a 132/11kV substation with associated cable works in Dubai, along with two transmission line packages from Africa. The firm’s Power Transmission & Distribution Business was awarded a contract for the supply and construction of a new gas insulated substation and associated substation extensions in Thailand.