Construction Highlights from 2020

Where do I even start? 2020 was a year like no other, caused by a global pandemic that claimed many lives, spiked retrenchment, closure of businesses, projects paused, increased food prices, and the list goes on. But today we focus on Construction Highlights from 2020. With Covid-19 construction had to adapt to new trends and technology. This coming with both disadvantages as well as advantages, communication between tenderers and clients became easier, but connectivity was sometimes an issue, systems required constant updates. IT was and continues to be the biggest contributor to communication during these times.

The construction industry was knocked with the Level 5 lockdown as all work came to a standstill for roughly 3 months, impacting on completion time, as well as other projects that were in the pipeline.

Commercial construction stats are expected to fall by 16% in 2020, with retail stats projected to be down by 33% and hotel/motel stats by 31%. Apart from the bad, there was also a good side to construction in 2020, please see projects below.

1. Calgro M3 breaks ground on student housing projects in South Africa (Linked to PPA 25970 which is Underway)

To be located within the Belhar CBD development, a mixed-use residential project, the accommodation will be built in three parcels of land located next to one another.

The 44 000m² site will border the southern boundary of the University of the Western Cape campus and is situated close to the Unibell train station and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.

Comprising of six buildings with nearly 2,720 beds, the accommodation will have different types of sleeping quarters for students including single and double rooms and double room apartments.

Additionally, there will be suitable accommodation and ablution facilities designed specifically for disabled students.

The accommodation is expected to have several communal facilities within the residences such as bathrooms, lounges, study and dining areas, kitchens, laundries, and tuckshops, along with gym areas and residence manager apartments.

2. World Bank approves $131m financing to upgrade roads in Uganda (Linked to DTA 818876 which closed on 03 July 2020)

The Uganda Roads and Bridges in the Refugee Hosting Districts Project will involve upgrading 105km Koboko-Yumbe-Moyo road, and upgrade road infrastructure in areas hosting refugees in the country’s West Nile sub-region.

Additionally, the bank is financing the rehabilitation of the 340km Tororo-Mbale-Soroti-Lira-Kamdini road under the Uganda North Eastern Road-corridor Asset Management Project as well as the construction of the 100km of the Kyenjonjo-Kabwoya road under the Albertine Region Sustainable Development Project.

3. Maire Tecnimont wins $400m contract for two oil and gas projects in Algeria (The contract, worth $400m, was secured by Maire Tecnimont’s subsidiary Tecnimont)

The project will be implemented in the BirSeba and Mouiat Outlad Messaoud oil fields, located in the Touggourt area, about 130km northeast of Hassi Messaoud.

The scope of the contract includes full engineering, procurement, and construction activities such as the expansion of the existing oil central processing facility, by installing a new oil separation train to double the total capacity up to 40,000 barrels of oil per day.

It also includes installing two additional remote gathering stations and over 400km of pipelines connecting the new oil production wells, along with implementing gas lift and water injection facilities.

Sources
World Construction Network
Epic Flow
BDC Network

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