Alcan to develop $1.7bn project
Sohar: Alcan has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (Adwea) and Oman Oil Company (OOC) for the joint development of a RO653.6 million ($1.7 billion) aluminium smelter project in Oman.

The joint venture, which will be based in Sohar industrial area, is 40 per cent owned by OOC, 40 per cent by Adwea and 20 per cent by Alcan. Alcan will also have the option to acquire up to 60 per cent of a second potline, which would produce an additional 330,000 tonnes per annum of aluminium.

Lulu plans $500m Pearl Island
Manama: Lulu Tourism Company (LTC) has announced plans to launch construction work on a $500 million (BD189 million) complex on an island off Manama, Bahrain, as part of its bid to boost tourism.
The 552,000 sq m project will include a hotel, 70 chalets, a residential complex of 40 buildings and a marina.
Work on the Pearl Island project will start this monthand will be completed in six years,  said Elias Qaraan, manager.

BFH foundation work complete
Manama: Foundation work has been completed on the first phase of the $1.3 billion (BD491.4 million) Bahrain Financial Harbour (BFH) project, which includes the Financial Centre consisting of the dual towers (50 storeys each), the eight-storeyed Financial Mall and the nine-storeyed Harbour House.
“Construction on the actual building has also started and is proceeding very fast,” said BFH sales and customer relations director Murtuz Zamanly.
“The towers are expected to be visible to passers-by within the coming few months.”
BFH has also announced the establishment of the $200 million Eastern Commercial Complex component of the project, which will house the Bahrain International Insurance Centre (BIIC), among the most important facilities in the development.
Meanwhile, a BD10 million contract to carry out the second-phase land reclamation, to be used mainly for the BIIC, has been awarded to Ahmed Mansoor Al A’ali.

Tabreed sets up Bahrain venture
Dubai: UAE-based National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed), Esterad (Esterad Investment Company) and A  Bin Hindi Group are investing up to BD5 million ($13.3 million) in the initial capital of Bahrain District Cooling Company (Tabreed Bahrain), to provide district cooling services to the Bahrain market.  A total of 55 per cent of the capital will be contributed by Tabreed, 40 per cent by Esterad and five per by the A A Bin Hindi Group.  The capital will be invested in stages as new plants are established.

Kuwait plans $3.5bn refinery
Kuwait City: Kuwait will build a fourth refinery in the country by 2010 and is looking for investments, its oil minister said.
The $3.5 billion refinery will have a capacity of more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd), Kuwait Oil Minister Shaikh Ahmad Al Fahd Al Sabah said.
Construction of the refinery would be completed by 2009-2010, Shaikh Ahmad said.

Chiyoda secures $650m project
Ras Laffan: Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company II (RasGas II) has awarded a QR2.3 billion ($650 million) onshore engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for Train 5 to Chiyoda Corp and Italian engineering company Snamprogetti.
The onshore contract provides for the construction of a world-scale 4.7 million tonne per year (tpy) LNG liquefaction train in Qatar.
The contract also provides for the extraction of natural gas liquids from the inlet gas stream. Train 5 will be built at the Rasgas site adjacent to Train 4 at Ras Laffan Industrial City and startup is scheduled for mid 2007.

Korean firm bags $370m contract
Kuwait City: Kuwait’s Ministry of Energy has awarded Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction of Korea a contract to build a KD109 million ($370 million) multi-stage flash desalination plant in Subiya, Kuwait.
The Subiya project is believed to be Kuwait’s biggest desalination plant, located 100 km north of Kuwait City and will produce 50 million gallons of water per day for as many as 600,000 people living in the area.
Doosan is to manufacture, install and test the Subiya desalination plant on a turnkey basis.
The construction, offered on a turnkey basis, is scheduled for completion in January 2007.

Foundation laid for $80m hospital
Muharraq: The foundation stone for the new BD30 million ($79.5 million) King Hamad General Hospital in Muharraq island, Bahrain, is to be laid in October.
Piling work for the new hospital complex is expected to start in October, said Works and Housing Ministry assistant undersecretary for finance and administration Mohammed Khalil Al Sayed. “We hope to award the main contract by the end of the year so that work could start in January 2005.”
Designs are to undergo some last minute changes to incorporate the academic facilities for the new Medical University of Bahrain, which will be located adjacent to the hospital, he said.
Details of the project were discussed by Al Sayed with a visiting team of officials from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), which will run the university.