News

The Wirtgen Group has held a highly successful Technology Days event at the brand new Kleemann facility in Göppingen near Stuttgart. Some 2,600 people attended this year's event, the largest of the three held so far by the firm. A key focus for this year was highlighting the full integration of the Kleemann crushing equipment operation within the Wirtgen Group. The previous Technology Days events were held at the Hamm facility in Tirschenreuth and at the Wirtgen headquarters in Windhagen. Following the Kle

The Chinese Government is boosting economic development in the Tibet autonomous region by commencing 781 rural road projects during its 11th five-year plan. This will see some 14,740km of rural road being constructed in Tibet. In all the rural road work is costing US$686 million, with the aim of increasing transport and trade.

The authorities in China's Shaanxi Province are working on a rural road improvement programme that will see existing links to outlying areas being upgraded and new transport connections being introduced. Some US$601 million has been budgeted for the work during 2010, with surfacing work being a key priority. In all Shaanxi Province aims to upgrade 10,000km of rural roads that connect to small communities and will also improve roads in the villages.

In Chile the Colombian highway operator ISA will carry out comprehensive repairs to Ruta 5 before the end of 2010. The company has been criticised by Chile’s Ministry for Public Works (MOP) for constant delays to road repair works following February's earthquake. The MOP threatened ISA with legal action, which prompted the new repair schedule being announced. Meanwhile work is commencing on the construction of 200km of highway near the northern city of Antofagasta in a project worth around US$320 million. T

The Indian Government is providing assistance for road construction work in neighbouring Nepal. This assistance is for building the Kulekhani – Kathmandu road section, which will be widened and upgraded with an asphalt surface. The road will be widened to 7.5m and the work is being carried out by Indian Contractor Golden Goods. Meanwhile asphalt surfacing work is has now been completed on Nepal’s Hetauda-Bhimphedi-Kulekhani-Pharphing-Chaimale road Section. Surfacing work is in hand on the remaining 21km sec

Qatar plans to spend some US$20 billion on building new roads over a five year period. The country’s infrastructure plans also include $11 billion of investment in a new airport and a $1 billion connection from the new airport to mega projects in Doha's northern region, as well as a new deepwater seaport and a new rail network.

South Korean firm Hyundai Engineering and Construction looks to have won the deal to build a massive causeway project in Kuwait. The firm offered a bid of US$2.6 billion. The causeway will be named after the late emir Shaikh Jaber al-Ahmad al Sabah. This 25km causeway will connect Kuwait’s northern Subbiya area with Kuwait City.

An impressive budget worth US$576 million has been set in Saudi Arabia for contracts to build 850km of new road and bridges. The budget was announced by the Transport Ministry of Saudi Arabia and the plan includes new roads in Baha and a deal to build the Haqv-Raith-Jella Al-Hayya road. Abdullah Al-Khodary's Sons will build the Najran-Sharourah-Wadia road while Abdul Aali Al-Ajmi will build the Jeddah-Jazan Road. Al Oyuni Investment & Contracting will build 95km of roads at Jizan while Omair Trading & Contr

Talks are now underway again for the US$3 billion Bahrain-Qatar Causeway project, which was delayed largely due to the financial crisis. Work on the 40km causeway project, which is intended to feature both road and rail connections, stopped in June of this year. The project is being handled by a consortium headed by Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company (QDREIC) and French firm Vinci Construction. Under the original plan the road links were due to be completed by 2013 and the rail connections by 2015,

Abu Dhabi’s Department of Transport plans to announce the winner of the US$2.7 billion Mafraq-Ghweifat highway project in the fourth quarter of this year. The 327km highway will connect Saudi Arabia and the UAE and this project will be the first transport public-private partnership (PPP) project in the region. Bidders include China Communications Construction Company, Austrian firm Strabag and Australian company Macquarie. Abu Dhabi’s Department of Transport says that the project is still undergoing final a

Construction work is now going ahead on the Suhodol-Tarcin section of Bosnia’s Corridor Vc highway. The Bosnian Government and highway company Autoceste FBiH Mostar signed a contract with Turkish company Cengiz Insaat Sanayi ve Ticaret for this section of the Corridor Vc highway. The deal is worth €115.2 million and will be for construction of a total of 5km of the motorway. The work is expected to take 28 months to complete. However a consortium of five construction companies from Bosnia and Herzegovina is