Shortlist for PMC Tenders Announced for Oman Railway

The shortlist for the Project Management Consultancy (PMC) for the construction of the Oman railway network has been announced. Three consortia from the Far East and Europe have been announced, with the leading consortium being based in South Korea.

The leading consortium on the shortlist is the Korea Rail Network Authority, led by the South Korean government rail organisation. This bid the lowest, at RO 32 million, and is favoured due to the Korean government offering support above and beyond the remit of the contract in question. The other two consortia were Tecnicas Reunidas, led by a Spanish firm which quoted RO 59.5 million, and Parsons International which quoted RO 78 million.

The winner of the tender will be adjudged by the Omani government on financial merit (30% of the weighting) and technical merit (70% of the weighting). KRNA is widely rumoured to be the favoured consortium due to the weight of expertise it brings, including a Chinese company that has built over 11000 km of high speed track on projects around the world.