VIENNA: Austrian construction firm Porr announced yesterday it was to sign a ¤1.89bn ($2.5bn) contract to build one of Doha’s new metro lines, as part of a consortium with two Qatari partners, SBG and HBK.
This was the second such contract for European firms in three days. The “Green Line” deal was to be signed in mid-June with construction on the 16.6km metro line — one of four planned in the wealthy Gulf state — and six stations due to take five years, Porr said in a statement.
Newspaper reports had said last week that Qatar Rail had awarded four contracts worth a total $8.2bn in the first phase of construction for the Doha Metro, including to Porr. But they gave no breakdown on the value of each contract.
Yesterday, Porr said it would be responsible for 50 percent of the “Green Line” project, worth ¤945m. It added this was the biggest contract in its history.
“Our team on site has worked closely together with the Executive Board in order to achieve this milestone in our company’s history thanks to their extensive experience and in-depth market knowledge,” CEO Karl-Heinz Strauss praised. The Doha metro project is part of Qatar’s “National Development Plan for 2030” and also comes as the Gulf state prepares to host the FIFA World Cup in 2022.
LONDON: Oil major BP cut its estimates of global gas reserves steeply yesterday, revising Russia’s still classified reserves down sharply and putting Iran at the top of the world league table.
In its benchmark annual statistical review for 2012, BP put global proven gas reserves at 187.3 trillion cubic metres as of the end of 2012, enough for about 56 years worth of global production at current rates. BP’s last report for 2011 estimated global gas reserves at 208.4 trillion. The cut of 21 trillion equals roughly to seven years of global gas consumption.
Agencies
