The deadline to submit bids for building a cargo terminal and a liquid jetty has been extended. MUSCAT: The deadline to submit bids for building a general cargo terminal and a liquid jetty at Salalah port has been extended to September 27 from an earlier set date of August 23.

As many as 41 international and local construction companies have already evinced interest in bidding for the engineering, procurement and commissioning contract, which will have an envisaged capital expenditure of $120 million.

According to earlier reports, the expansion project involves building additional multipurpose berths, a new breakwater, facilities for dry bulk commodities and a new liquids jetty.

As part of the expansion, capacity at the terminal will be increased to handle 40 million tonnes of dry bulk commodities and five million tonnes of liquid products per annum.

The proposed liquid terminal will handle petrochemicals and other liquid products shipped into and out of the Salalah free zone located close to the port.

According to the plan, the new liquid jetty will go on stream by the end of 2012. The terminal will be able to accommodate some of the world’s biggest vessels.

As the Salalah free zone is embarking on second phase expansion, the proposed facilities at the port will allow the port to serve a number of free zone companies, which plan to produce and export various liquids and chemicals.

The liquid terminal will primarily serve the $900 million Salalah Methanol Company, which came into operation recently. Other industrial investments that produce liquids or depend on liquid feedstock imports for their operations are also slated to come on stream at the free zone in the coming years.

Major companies are in the process of setting up mining facilities around Salalah for limestone and gypsum. The Port of Salalah is the only port in the region that can handle the export of these commodities. Once operational, these facilities will provide long-term stable volumes for the mutual benefit of these investors, the port and the region as a whole.

Potential investors

Further, the Salalah free zone has attracted a number of potential investors who are keen on setting up various light, medium and heavy industries within the zone. This will directly result in increase cargo throughput for the port.

Construction firms showing interest in participating in the port expansion tender include Afcons Infrastructure Ltd, Sarooj Construction Company, Essar Projects, BAM International, National United Engineering Construction, Desert Line, Galfar Engineering and Contracting, Consolidated Contracting Company, Daewoo Enigineering and Construction, Ballast Nedam International, Douglas OHI, The Hamdan Trading Group, Group Five International, Archirodon, Van Oord, Hindustan Construction, Jan De Nul, Sambu Construction, Muhibbah Enigineering, Strabag Oman, TML INSAAT, FIDENS, 115 Construction, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock, Simplex Infrastructures, Gammon India, Carillion Alawi, Hyundai Enigineering, China Harbour, Boskalis Westminster, Samwhan Corp, RDS Project Limited, Erenport, STFA, Impresa, STX Coonstruction, Six Construction, GS Engineering and Middle East Dredging.