AL OSAIS Contracting Company (a subsidiary of Al Osais International Holding Company), a leading Saudi general contracting company in the oil and gas, petrochemical and power sectors, has embarked on an ambitious programme of diversification and expansion in a bid to become a leading global multidisciplinary group.

Its recent strategies have seen it establish joint ventures with premier international firms to strengthen its offering in the electrical and mechanical services sector.

Over the past five years, the group has been witnessing considerable growth in the power sector through its joint venture company Al Osais-Inabensa, which was set up with its well-known and specialised Spanish partner Inabensa (a subsidiary of Abengoa).

“We now cover the construction of high-voltage substations and transmission lines up to 380 kV,” says Abdul Rahman A Moraisel, vice-president, for Al Osais International Holding Company. “In fact, Al Osais-Inabensa has now successfully completed an overhead transmission line project in Qurayyat and is in the process of completing two 380 kV substations in Jeddah and Riyadh.”

Al Osais has also recently joined forces with Dawco Construction Company, an experienced Canadian construction company highly specialised in heavy industrial process work to create DCM Arabia.

“With this new joint venture, we are now strategically positioned to undertake electro-mechanical and instrumentation construction work to serve the major industries covering sectors such as oil and gas, petrochemical, metallurgies, power generation and water treatment,” says Jonathan Messier, its general manager.

Messier also adds that the company’s expertise is not limited to construction. “We can assist our customers by providing tailor-made services including project management, procurement, pre-commissioning and commissioning of new installations. We can also add value for our clients by developing a maintenance philosophy, which will enable them to benefit from obtaining the optimum uptime on their physical assets. We can work efficiently in greenfield and brownfield environments safely and following the highest industry standards,” he adds.

The company has also created Rehal Al Sharq Logistic Services (RS Lanes) to provide logistic, transportation and custom clearance services to various sectors. This new company has more than 500 vehicles and equipment to support any road transportation needs in the kingdom and other GCC countries.

In addition, Arabian Pipeline and Services Company (Anabeeb) provides quality-assured total productive maintenance, with intelligent solutions across a diverse range of industrial sectors while meeting rigorous health, safety and environmental standards. The company is renowned for offering comprehensive dependable quality services, whether in prompt response to customer emergencies or as part of its strategic total productive maintenance approach. Anabeeb says it has all of the expertise and the most up-to-date equipment to successfully complete oil, gas, water, power and communications projects. It is skilled at carrying out inspection, testing, construction, commissioning and maintenance projects. The company has become known for its non-intrusive project handling, without disrupting traffic flow and greatly improving client value.

Al Osais is now looking forward to offering special marine engineering services by setting up another joint venture with a well-known international company to which the firm has proposed a memorandum of understanding.

Al Osais International Holding was established in 2006 to enfold all the Al Osais subsidiaries, joint ventures and affiliates – a total of 16 companies – all under one roof. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, the company offers general contracting services for the construction of industrial buildings, hospitals and housing units, among other infrastructural projects. It also engages subcontractors for ancillary services.

The group is also involved in the power sector in undertaking high-voltage substations and OHTL (overhead transmission lines) up to 380 kV; telecommunication projects; industrial maintenance for the petrochemical and oil and gas industries; road construction and maintenance; logistics services; infrastructure and earthworks; design and manufacture of structural steel and body trucks and storage tanks; rental of heavy equipment; real estate investment; trading of electrical and mechanical items; heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) projects; environmental and inspection services.

As part of its vision is to be one of the leading global multidisciplinary groups, noted for its commitment in providing efficient and quality services in the construction, manufacturing, trading and services sectors, Al Osais intends to develop business in the following sectors:

• Heavy civil engineering construction projects that cover infrastructure such as tunnels, bridges, flyovers, aqueducts, locks and weirs in the oil and gas and petrochemical industries.

• Cruise and cargo port facilities including construction of quay walls, dolphins, jetty heads, storage areas and building utilities;

• Foundation works such as marine foundations, diaphragm walls, grout anchors and chemical injections;

• Industrial complexes including industrial buildings, power plants, railway stations and utility buildings;

• Offshore utilities such as oil production platforms, concrete gravity base structure, underwater pile driving and SPT anchors; and

• Telecommunications, through a partnership with an experienced global company to handle turnkey projects including design and execution to serve STC (Saudi Telecommunications Company) and other clients in this sector.

Al Osais is currently busy in executing projects for Saudi Aramco, Satorp, Dammam University, and Royal Commission of Jubail and Yanbu. For Saudi Satorp, it is building permanent infrastructure worth SR550 million (nearly $150 million) as part of Jubail Export Refinery Package Seven. Projects for Saudi Aramco include Manifa industrial support facilities worth SR392 million ($104 million); expansion of Tanajib facilities valued at SR233 million ($61 million); JGC/Aramco Manifa Centre package at SR125 million ($33 million); replacement of critical substations at Riyadh refinery worth SR106 million ($22.26 million); equipment spot rental; general surveying services; and Tanajib additional stevedoring services.

Projects for the Royal Commission include the construction of housing units, Phase Seven, at SR574 million ($153 million); site development of Mutrafiah worth SR244 million ($65 million); and reinforcement of irrigation system, Phase Two, costing SR58 million ($15.46 million). It is also building housing for teaching staff at Dammam University complex worth SR300 million ($80 million). Al Osais is also busy in a number of long and short-term contracts for maintenance in the oil and gas, petrochemical and power sectors.

The company’s subsidiaries and affiliates employ around 11,000 employees and own over 1,500 pieces of heavy construction equipment in different locations in Saudi Arabia, other Middle Eastern and Asian countries.