Infrastructure projects in full swing in capital
Abu Dhabi government departments have issued tenders worth hundreds of millions of dirhams during the last two weeks, reflecting that the government is still the main driver of the economic growth.
The tenders have demanded millions of dirhams as bank guarantees from interested contractors to participate in the bidding process, showing the total value of the projects goes into millions of dirhams.
Abu Dhabi Municipality, Abu Dhabi International Airport and Tourism Development and Investment Company put out the highest number of tenders for the development projects in the emirate.
A tender floated by Municipality of Abu Dhabi City for improving the traffic efficiency of intersections within Abu Dhabi Islands has demanded Dh3.5 million of bank guarantees.
Another bigger tender for the roads and infrastructure project of 170 industrial land plots in Al Faya North was floated which demanded bank guarantee of Dh10 million.
Abu Dhabi Municipality also floated a tender for the development works of the main camel racetrack in Al Wathba, requiring minimum bank guarantee of Dh1 million from interested bidders. The total value of each of these projects goes in millions of dirhams.
Abu Dhabi has been spending the most on infrastructure development than any other capital in the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries as part of its 2030 Vision.
Abdulla Al Shamsi, Acting Executive Director of the Municipal Infrastructure and Assets Sector, at Abu Dhabi Municipality said earlier this year the department is executing projects valued at Dh18.35 billion ($5 billion).
Plans for the infrastructure sector over the next three years include huge projects and a budget that is bigger than the budget of projects currently being executed.
"I firmly believe Abu Dhabi is the biggest spender on infrastructure among capital cities in the GCC, we work with massive financial support.
This underlines that Abu Dhabi should enjoy the best infrastructure in the Arab region, which will help to attract foreign investment and prevent any problems that Abu Dhabi could otherwise face in future, whether involving roads, maintenance or facilities," Al Shamsi added.
Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) has also invited contractors to bid for various roads, bridges, grading, utility network and pump station on Sir Bani Yas Island.
It invited only those companies to submit applications with annual turnover of Dh300 million and have worked on infrastructure projects with value of more than Dh75 million.
TDIC also floated a tender for the enabling works of an officer tower on a plot area of 20,000 metres. The company asked only those contractors to apply who have recently completed projects in excess of Dh100m in the UAE in the last years and has annual turnover of Dh400 million.
Currently, Abu Dhabi's biggest projects include $28-billion Saadiyat Island https://www.menainfra.com/news/abu-dhabi-construction/ , the $22 billion Masdar City project, and the Khalifa City project. This is the single biggest project in the capital and has a budget of $40 billion.
Supervision Committee for the Expansion of the Abu Dhabi International Airport (Scadia) also floated a mega tender for the expansion of the Terminal 3 and refurbishment of Terminal 1. The Terminal 3 facilities comprise two buildings.
Another Scadia tender seeks bids for designing a training facility at the airport.
On Monday, Abu Dhabi’s Union Railway Company, the project which is linking the UAE via cargo and passenger trains, also floated a multi-million dirham tender for diesel locomotives and freight wagons.