RO 78m contract for Oman convention, exhibition centre awarded to Carillion

Sun, 16 June 2013

MUSCAT — The tender for the Construction of Package 2 at the Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre Precinct developed by Omran in Al Irfan area has been awarded to Carillion Alawi, as approved by the Tender Board with a total value of RO 78 million. The Package includes the construction of exhibition halls, car park facilities and the district cooling plant.
The scope of Package 2 for the construction of one of Oman’s most highly anticipated developments includes a structured car park facility for 4,200 vehicles on 3 parking levels totalling an area of 143,000 sqm, exhibition halls of approximately 45,000 sqm gross area which will provide five divisible state of the art halls with service trenches, plant rooms, and acoustically treated vertically movable partitions to enable separation and sound isolation of each hall.
This package also comprises a concourse with a glazed curtain wall system, fully equipped with main production kitchen and three cafes, hospitality suites, administration/office areas, a central landscaped courtyard and two circulation nodes connecting the concourse to the car park.

Additionally, the scope will also cover the ancillary buildings, namely the Energy Centre which serves as the District Cooling Plant for the entire precinct, security screening facility, taxi amenity building, waste management building, a landscape maintenance building and electrical substation facility.
The project also features a number of sustainable initiatives in conservation of energy, potable water and use of treated sewage effluent for cooling and irrigation and thus targeting Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the United States Green Building Council.
Wael al Lawati, CEO of Omran stated that the award of this package represents a major milestone for the company as this is the second major construction package to be awarded by Omran after the award of the development of the Site Infrastructure and Utilities Package late last year.
He also expressed that this award certainly makes everyone anxious to see the first part of the iconic OCEC landmark Project materialise within 20 months from today and Omran is in the process, as part of the Project Execution Plan, to release a series of other construction packages by the end of the year that include the Convention Centre building with a capacity of a 3,200-seat auditorium and banquet halls, a 5-star hotel, a 4-star hotel, and a number of class-A office buildings.
Said al Qasmi, OCEC Chief Project Officer at Omran said, “Omran as a prudent developer, has invested a lot of efforts during the various design stages of the project to scrutinise all the design options presented to ensure maximum use of local materials utilising the local supply chain and also allocated marks during the evaluation process of the submitted tenders to the ‘Local Content’ criteria.”
“We do not select Contractors only because of their proven track record and technical capabilities in the field of construction but most importantly, for their relevant and specific proposals to use an extensive list of qualified local subcontractors and suppliers as well as for offering formal recruitment and training programmes to their Omani staff therefore providing valuable addition to Omran’s local capacity building strategy,” added Al Qasmi.
With anticipated opening in 2016, the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre operated by AEG Ogden, represents a key cornerstone of the ongoing efforts to position the Sultanate as part of the vast growing Events Industry which will greatly contribute towards the diversification of the national economy and the employmentof Omani nationals during construction and the operation phases of the Project.
Due for completion in late 2016, the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre is located in its own fully integrated precinct only four kilometres from Muscat International Airport.
The design of the Centre will ensure a flow of the meetings space to suit the most discerning conference and exhibition organisers. It also incorporated expansive concourse areas to enable ease of large delegations with floor to ceiling windows overlooking landscaped gardens and water features.
The Centre will feature two tiered auditoria to seat 3,200 and 450 while the exhibition halls will feature 22,000 square metres of column-free exhibition space.
Halls 1 and 2 will have a superior fit out, specialised acoustic treatment, advanced lighting and rigging requirements to act as a multi-purpose space for plenary sessions, concerts, performances, gala events on a larger scale of up to 10,000 seated theatre-style.
The Centre will also include an additional 14 meeting rooms for 70-360 delegates, two well-appointed ballrooms to seat up to 2,360, VIP Pavilion, a spacious food-court and a multi-storey car park with capacity for 4,000 vehicles.
The Precinct will provide the infrastructure necessary to host successful international, regional and local events and for the enjoyment of the community.
These include a five star hotel linked to the convention centre, two four star, and a three star hotel and apartments with a combined total of 1,000 rooms. A business park, retail shopping mall surrounded by a nature reserve which will be a haven for Oman’s exotic birdlife, parklands and wadi (valley) park are also part of this picturesque precinct.