Drake & Scull Saudi, the Mechanical Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) arm of Drake & Scull International (DSI) PJSC in the Kingdom, has recently been awarded a $36.7 million contract to provide turnkey MEP solutions to a high-profile project in Jeddah - the Assila Towers, which consists of a 5-star hotel and serviced apartments operated by Rocco Forte Hotels (RFH), one of the leading luxury hotel brands in Europe. Developed by Amias Real Estate on behalf of the Saudi holding company Assila Investment Co., the investment arm of Sheikh Mohamad Ibrahim Al-Issa and family, The Rocco Forte Assila Towers is a two-tower mixed-use scheme that includes a 23-storey hotel with 197 rooms and a 17-storey apartment tower containing 82 serviced apartments located on Tahlia Road, within easy reach of the central business and shopping district. Al-Saad General contracting is the main contractor of the project. DSI will mobilize on site shortly and is expected to complete the project by June 2013. Khaldoun Tabari, CEO of Drake & Scull International, said: "Jeddah is a particularly important growth market for DSI. We expect commercial development to achieve an accelerated growth pace in Jeddah, being the largest sea port on the Red Sea and the most cosmopolitan of all Saudi Arabian cities. This will in turn drive the growth of construction activities and subsequently increase demand for integrated design, engineering and other specialized construction services. Analysts have predicted Jeddah's economy to sustain a healthy growth pace in the long-term, making the city a truly important barometer for our expansion plans in the Kingdom." "Saudi will continue to be the largest contributor to our backlog and we remain confident and optimistic about our performance across all provinces in the Kingdom and especially in Riyadh," he added. Founded in 1966 in Abu Dhabi, UAE, Drake & Scull International PJSC currently offers scalable and comprehensive engineering solutions to clients in the MENA region, Asia and Europe. The company's civil, MEP and water and power Saudi subsidiaries are currently exploring opportunities across various sectors in the kingdom and have formed alliances with a number of major Saudi developers such as Aramco and Rayadah Investment.
