The Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC) has extended the deadline to 15 February for companies to prequalify for the tender to design and build the next phase of the Riyadh Metro project.
MEED previously reported that contractors have formed teams to bid for the project.
The teams, each of which contains a rolling stock supplier, include:
- Alstom (France), Freysinnet Contracting (local), WeBuild (Italy), FCC (Spain), Nesma (local)
- Siemens Germany), Samsung C+T (South Korea), Acciona (Spain), Alayuni (local)
- Hitachi Rail (Japan), Daewoo (South Korea), Hyundai E&C (South Korea), Gulermak (Turkiye), Albawani (local)
Spanish consulting firms Typsa, Ayesa and US-based Aecom are the design consultants for the Alstom-led consortium
Spain-headquartered Idom, South Korea’s Dowha and Switzerland’s Pini are the designers for the Siemens-led team.
US-based Jacobs is the design consultant for the Hitachi Rail-led group.
RCRC first issued the request for prequalifications notice in October. The initial deadline was 16 October.
Line 7 will be executed in two phases.
Selected firms have been invited to prequalify to work on the project’s first phase, sources close to the scheme told MEED.
The first phase includes constructing a metro line linking Qiddiya Entertainment City, King Abdullah International Gardens, King Salman Park, Misk City and Diriyah Gate. The total length is about 65 kilometres (km), of which 47km is underground and 19km is elevated.
It will have 19 stations. Fourteen stations will be built underground and five overground.
The consultants working on the scheme are France’s Egis and Lebanon-based Dar al-Handasah, according to regional projects tracker MEED Projects.
Phase two of Line 7 will connect Diriyah Gate with New Murabba and King Khaled International airport. The project is still in the study stage.
In June 2020, a joint venture led by French consultancy firm Systra won the preliminary design contract for the second phase of Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Metro.
Riyadh Metro
Riyadh Metro is one of the world’s largest public transport network projects. The scheme’s first phase features six lines with 84 stations.
In November 2022, RCRC struck a deal with three contracting consortiums working on the Riyadh Metro scheme regarding the completion of the project’s remaining works.
Construction activity on the project slowed in recent years due to disputes over prolongation and the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. RCRC awarded the main construction packages for the scheme on 28 July 2013.
The Fast consortium won lines 4, 5 and 6, reportedly valued at $7.82bn. The Bacs consortium was awarded lines 1 and 2 for $9.45bn, while Arriyadh New Mobility secured Line 3 for $5.21bn.
US firm Bechtel leads the Bacs consortium. Italian firm Ansaldo STS is the leader of the Arriyadh New Mobility group and Spanish firm FCC Construccion heads the Fast consortium.
AtkinsRealis has delivered programme management and supervision services for the operations and maintenance of the Riyadh Metro scheme.