The first British construction delegation to post-Gaddafi Libya set out for Libya this week, Building reported. British Expertise lead the expedition which is thought to include 10 of the organisation’s members including Kier, Halcrow, Mott Macdonald, Capita Symonds, KBR, Ernst & Young, GMW Architects and Conseco International.
The group will fly to Tripoli via Turkey and will meet key government contacts including the housing and utilities ministry, which also covers sectors such as transport and infrastructure.
“It is very much a toe in the water thing because there is an interim government,” said Dominic James, British Expertise director for the Middle East. “We think Libya is going to be a fantastic market in the medium and long term.”
James added that the delegation would address the issue of existing contracts in Libya, which have left many British firms owed money and are currently being reviewed by the interim government.
Architect Siddell Gibson said it was hoping to hear whether a £300 mixed use scheme it was working on before the civil war was about to recommence. The Medina Tower is being developed by a Maltese client who stayed on during the unrest, and is not reliant on public funding, which means it could get going quickly, Ron Siddell, told Construction Manager.
It is not only British firms that are owed money but British workers have also not been paid and have lost all of their possessions stolen by supposedly rebels. The British Government are not doing enough to redress this situation on our behalf.