CAPT rejects new consortium for Al-Zour complex
This news has been read 12136 times!
KUWAIT CITY, Feb 13: The Central Agency for Public Tenders has rejected a request from the Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) to re-form the alliances that submit bids for the planned $10 billion Al-Zour Petrochemical Complex project, reports Al-Qabas daily. The Med magazine stated KIPIC had requested the approval of a modified list of contractors qualified for the project after “changing alliances between some contractors.”
However, CAPT decided not to approve this request, and did not provide a reason for not approving, and did not disclose how the amended list of qualified contractors differed from the original list. The magazine indicated in its report that the decision to withhold approval is likely to increase concerns about this project, which suffers from significant delays. Earlier this year, two companies, US-based Fluor Engineering and South Korea’s SK Engineering & Construction, withdrew from the bidding process for the project, as the two companies were expected to participate in the bidding process as part of larger consortia with other contractors at a time when the two companies did not mention the reason for not participating in the tender.
The magazine said that the Central Agency for Public Tenders discussed the KIPIC request at a meeting held on January 23, where it discussed multiple issues related to the Al- Zour facility and did not take a final decision on it, and it will continue to discuss it at its next meeting. The topics include a request by Indian engineering firm Larsen & Toubro to pre-qualify the project as the sole bidder, and requests calling for Hyundai E&C of South Korea to replace SK E&C as Petrofac’s bidding partner for packages one and two. The CAPT also discussed a separate complaint regarding the exclusion of Singapore’s Mepcom Offshore & Marine from the bidding process, as a final decision on this complaint was postponed until the next meeting of the group, according to the document.
This news has been read 12136 times!
