Kuwait aims to complete metro project by 2020, official says
Partnerships Technical Bureau to start accepting letters of interest from relevant companies wanting to invest in the project, developer says, with submission offers to follow
As Kuwait’s metro project enters its first phase, the project leader at the Partnerships Technical Bureau has said that the developer will aim to complete the transportation project by the year 2020.
Fatima Al Kandari said that the project would help relieve the stress on Kuwait’s current transport infrastructure, which causes major traffic jams on its roads during peak hours.
“We should have this project complete and the metro operating by this date (the year 2020), and we hope to have it finished even earlier. We can’t completely control or regulate the date however, as the private sector is executing this project,” she told Kuwait Times, a daily newspaper.
Although Al Kandari declined to specify how much the project would likely cost, she did indicate that ticket prices on the metro would be set according to sections and class.
“There will be women’s only sections as well as a first class carriage to offer variety for passengers,” she said.
Al Kandari added that the project consisted of three phases: the announcement phase, the phase in which companies sent letters of interest in investing in the project and the review of the letters of interested companies.
“The second phase will start soon, maybe during this month. In this phase, interested parties are committed to conditions and only the serious companies will enter into this phase,” she said.
“The third phase includes the submission offers. This phase should also take place during this year,” she added.
The metro project consists of six parts, she explained: One for the contact systems, which has started, then one for the operator, and four parts for the infrastructure. Different companies and bodies are currently announcing their internet to invest in it (the project).
Furthermore, she said that a feasibility study would be conducted by investors, in light of the environmental implications of the project.
“We have already been in touch with the Environment Public Authority (EPC) regarding the environment dangers and ways of decreasing it. Without the approval of the EPA, it will be impossible to get the correct license to execute the project,” she said.