The total value of contracts awarded in Qatar this year has already passed last year’s mark, and may cross the $30bn threshold for the first time.
The information was collected by Meed (formerly the Middle Eastern Economic Digest). It found that $22.5bn worth of contracts were awarded in Qatar in nine months up to September, compared with $22.3bn in the whole of 2013. It commented: "With several major contracts due to be awarded in the final quarter of the year, Qatar could record $30bn worth of annual contracts for the very first time."
Ed James, director of analysis at Meed, said: "It has been almost four years since Qatar was announced as the host of the FIFA 2022 World Cup, and it’s fair to say that it is only recently that the market has started to see the a significant ramp-up in infrastructure investment.
"From 2010 to 2012 annual contract awards were running at between $10bn and $15bn, so we are seeing a marked and sustained increase in project activity."
Projects awarded in the past 12 months include the $3.3bn tunnelling package on the Doha Metro Gold Line, the $1bn Lusail Light Railway, and a range of highways projects totalling $4.6bn.
Altogether, about $200bn worth of large infrastructure projects are expected to be let as part of Qatar’s National Vision 2030 plan. Other large infrastructure schemes in the offing include the a $3bn chain of reservoirs, Santiago Calatrava’s $5bn Sharq Crossing in Doha Bay (pictured), and a long discussed causeway to Bahrain.Â
Al-Jaber Engineering, a local firm, is the top ranked contractor by value of work awarded over the past year, with just over $2bn worth of contracts, followed closely by India’s Larsen & Toubro.
