DAMMAM, 11 February 2007 — Saudi Transport Minister Jabara Al-Seraisry said yesterday that the consortium led by the Kuwaiti warehousing company Agility is qualified to compete for the contract of the land bridge program to connect Jeddah with Dammam. While speaking to the media following a meeting of the Saudi Railway Organization (SRO) in Dammam on Wednesday, Al-Seraisry said other consortia also qualified for the bidding: Saudi Binladen Group, Bouygues, Mada Industrial and Commercial Investment Company.
It was decided earlier that the concession period for the investors in the major railway project would be 50 years, in which the government would provide the land required for the projects free of cost for the period. A body headed by the minister of transportation will be set up to supervise the transportation sector.
Al-Seraisry, who is also the chairman of the SRO, said the government gives highest priority to safety of the passengers. The SRO and the ministry have several projects to guarantee safety on the railway tracks, some of which are in their final stage and will be ready in one or two years. The minister pointed out that an objective comparison of traffic accidents would show that railway accidents are very few and the SRO is taking all the necessary safety precautions not to repeat such accidents and repair the faults if at all there is any. The safety measures included the fencing of more than 800 kilometers of the rail tacks and building bridges over the crossing points. Both schemes cost more than SR450 million.
The minister said that the privatization of the SRO will take some time as it involves very important matters such as decisions on the future of a large number of employees on the one hand and keeping up the efficiency of the railway on the other.
However, the minister did not indicate the precise time when the huge railway projects would start as detailed negotiations between private companies and the concerned government agencies have to be completed.
During the meeting, a video documentation of the railway schemes, including the development of infrastructure, networks and fleet with the aim of equipping the SRO to meet the increasing demand from the railway services, was presented.
Khaled Yahya, director general of the SRO, said the railway services tripled over the past six years.
