Gulf Holding Company (GHC) announced the signing of a $380 million construction contract to Al Hamad Contracting Company for the setting up of its flagship project the ‘Villamar @ the Harbour’.

This $620 million Signature Project is Bahrain’s most advanced and the Bahrain Financial Harbour’s first residential component.

'We selected Al Hamad Contracting Company post an in-depth audit of a host of highly competitive bids submitted by a host of regional and global construction majors vying for this highly distinguished project,” said Gulf Holding Company vice-chairman and chief executive officer Ahmed Al Ameer

“Our key selection criterion was to ensure that the selected company matched the best professional and technical global standards.

“Additionally, the $380 million which is the value of this construction contract is a part of the total estimated investment volume of $620 million in this project which is to be completed in the first quarter of 2010,” he added.

Elaborating on the global response to the contract Al Ameer said:

“The contract for the development of Villamar @ the Harbour evoked huge response from global firms, which is a significant reflection of the interest generated by the project as well as the enthusiasm to participate in Bahrain’s booming and dynamic real estate market.”

He said this developmental project, which includes a unique and distinctive design concept of the twisted towers, falls within the 'Signature Series' devised by the Gulf Holding Company to create a bank of highly distinguished global projects.

He also said that this project is one of the most sophisticated and largest multi-use projects witnessed by Bahrain.

“Furthermore, given the stature of this development which, on completion, will most definitely be Bahrain’s most advanced and exclusive residential complex and given our focus on absolute quality, it was imperative that we associate with the best qualified partners for Villamar @ the Harbour.

“The selection of Al Hamad Contracting which has an impressive pedigree and construction track record is a natural extension of this focus. However, this contract excludes piling work which has already commenced at the development and the contract for which was already awarded by us to a company specialized in this field,” Al Ameer added.

Elaborating on the award of the tender, Craig Oldfield, chief development officer, GHC, said:

“Our selection of Al Hamad Contracting, follows a strict and assiduous round of scrutiny of the bids against global benchmarks.

“We were convinced that Al Hamad with vast regional expertise is the ideal partner to develop the prestigious Villamar @ the Harbour development, We are confident that they would do so as per schedule in Q1 2010, while maintaining the highest standards of quality.”

Scheduled for completion in June 2009, Villamar @ the Harbour is a signature development and one of the only such projects in the region which is built along ‘Focused Design’ principles and features some of the most advanced technological features such as next generation security systems, automated-covered walkway designed to shield tenants from the harsh summer days, amongst several others. Furthermore, it boasts of five design elements namely, the Lifestyle Apartments, Terrace Podium, Sky Villas, Terraced Villas and the Twisting Towers, which is the second of its kind in the entire Middle East region. Furthermore, Villamar @ the Harbour

Commenting on the award of the contract, Nashat Farhan Sahawneh, chairman, Al Hamad Contracting Company said:

“The development of Villamar @ the Harbour is one of the few projects of its kind in the region and is considered by most specialists as amongst the most difficult and challenging assignments both from a technical as well as logistics point-of-view.

“It is truly a state of the art project cons