Work on Cityview project to start

Work on the stalled Landmark Cityview real estate project in Bahrain is set to begin soon with the developer submitting a plan for construction due to take place from April until December this year.

The work schedule has been submitted to the ministerial committee for urbanisation and infrastructure, said Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa.

The panel tasked to study stalled real estate projects had mandated Cityview Real Estate Company to carry out the scheme as per the schedule submitted by its board. The developer has been urged to honour its commitments, failing which the project will be referred to stalled real estate settlement committee, he added.

Faithful+Gould names Qatar head

Faithful+gould, a leading integrated project and programme management consultancy, has appointed Mark Ainger as the new country director for its 140-people-strong Qatari division in the Middle East.

Ainger has been in the industry for 30 years, most recently as technical director within the property and buildings division for WSP and director of buildings for Aecom in Qatar.

In his new role, Ainger will be responsible for developing the company’s business in Qatar and positioning Faithful+Gould to make the most of the strategic opportunities available over the coming years.

Bahrain opens new ring road

Bahrain authorities have opened a part of a 4.5-km road project which links the Al Fateh intersection from the Sheikh Daij Highway to Al Nejma Club.

The first phase of the Juffair peripheral three-way highway, which has been completed at a cost of  BD2.06 million ($5.41 million), also includes implementing a concrete central reservation, dredging and reclamation works, building brick pavements along the intersections, a stormwater drainage network and ground channels, paving works, speed humps, lighting and signage works.

Daimler’s global sales increase

Daimler Trucks said based on the December figures, its global sales increased to more than 500,000 units last year despite partly difficult markets.

In 2014, Daimler Trucks sold 495,700 vehicles worldwide under the Mercedes-Benz, Fuso, Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas Built Buses and BharatBenz brands.

Dr Wolfgang Bernhard, member of the Daimler board of management, responsible for Daimler Trucks & Buses, said conditions in the truck market will remain challenging in 2016, but the company’s sights remain set on its next sales target of 700,000 trucks in 2020.

Egypt mulls $1.5bn rail network

The Egyptian government is working on a $1.5-billion rail project that will link 6th of October City, a satellite town in the Giza Governorate, to Cairo, said a report.

The rail network will be a major boost to the upcoming 40 residential blocks and six sports centres in the 6th of October City Gardens area under the government’s social housing project.

The government will also ready a new plan to develop the area at an investment of E£1 billion ($127.3 million), reported the Daily News Egypt.

Terex announces key appointment

Terex, a global manufacturer of lifting and material handling machinery, has appointed Gary Cooke as its new regional sales manager for the Middle East in the Aerial Works Platform (AWP) segment.

Cooke’s principal role will be to support distributors and channel partners of Genie products in the region, and establish new distributor relationships in territories within the region, said Terex.

In the 20 years Cooke has worked in the Middle East, he spent 14 with Rapid Access, Lavendon Group’s Middle East business. He was instrumental in the growth of Lavendon’s UAE business and its expansion into Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, said the company.

More recently, as international business development manager, Cooke successfully supplied powered access equipment to Egypt, Algeria, Turkmenistan and Iraq.

Cooke will report directly to Charbel Kordahi, who was recently promoted as managing director for Terex Material Handling and AWP Middle East and Southern Africa.

In his new role, Kordahi will be responsible for the Terex material handling facility in the Middle East, in addition to the AWP segment.

Egypt wins $500m funding

The World Bank has approved loans worth $500 million for the development of infrastructure for the industrial zones in the Upper Egypt governorates of Qena and Sohag, said a report.

Qena and Sohag are two of the poorest governorates in Egypt, where urban unemployment is higher than the national average, which stood at 12.8 per cent in the third quarter of last year.

The World Bank will finance the development of the infrastructure for the industrial zones in Upper Egypt governorates of Qena and Sohag, reported Ahram Online, citing the Industry and Foreign Trade Minister Tarek Kabil.

In December last year, the global funder had approved the expansion of Egypt’s portfolio with its subsidiary the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) to $6 billion from $5 billion over the five years till 2019.